LFL: EVERTON

After a poor opening quarter we gradually improved and we dominated the second-half. All in all I’m happy with a point and we’re back up to fourth spot.

BEFORE

I can't wait for tonight's match and am confident, but not overconfident, that we can get something from it. The victory against Chelsea was one that will resonate for years to come and with the news that both Cirkin and Mundle are coming back into contention, things are looking very rosy for us. There's a lot of good feeling between the two clubs, partly due to the presence of our own Jordan Pickford and also because of the Toffees' great support for the Bradley Lowery Foundation. As soon as the whistle blows of course we'll be going for a win, as will they. Everton are currently in fifteenth position and have lost their last two league matches but we know that no games are easy at this level and I expect a tough contest. Hopefully Alderete will be back in the starting eleven and even though we did so well without him last time out, you've got to feel confident having him in your defence. I'll be watching the game with other members of the London Branch and my match prediction is a battling 2-1 win.

I got to the venue not long before 7.00 and they were having some problem with the TV remote so I left it to the experts and checked the team-news. There were no changes in the starting line-up from the Chelsea game and only one change on the bench, with Adingra replacing Jones. The problem with the telly was soon resolved when one of the regulars (take a bow, Peter) legged it round to the supermarket and got some batteries and, as a few other members of the Faithful drifted in, we were all set for the game. For some daft reason I’d temporarily forgotten that David Moyes was their head coach but there he was on the screen grinning away when they asked him what kind of reception he was expecting. “Mixed…” he replied, very optimistically. There were about twenty of our fans in the bar as the game kicked off.

THE MATCH

Garner had a decent shot that went narrowly wide after just fifteen seconds so I hoped that wasn’t a sign of things to come. We soon settled down and began to put together some decent flowing moves but Everton looked threatening every time they came forward. There was loud applause in the ninth minute to commemorate young Anna Rose Bradley who recently lost her life to cancer. In the fourteenth minute we had our first chance but on the replay Traore’s shot was much wider than it had initially looked. Next thing Everton were ahead when Ndiaye dribbled from the right touchline and wriggled through most of our defence before smashing the ball home. There was a VAR check but I wasn’t holding out any hope. The goal stood. Sadiki was booked after a reckless foul and after Mukiele was promptly booked, probably for mouthing off, so we really needed to calm down. A low Grealish shot came off our left post and all in all it had been a bad first quarter for us. 

I wondered if Le Bris would make an early change if we didn’t improve. We were lucky to escape in the twenty-eighth when Barry somehow shot wide from almost point-blank range. Shortly afterwards Traore was equally guilty for us when he completely failed to connect with a great Le Fee cross from our left. Barry was yellow-carded for a bad foul so he’d had a very poor spell. About ten minutes before the break we finally started to put some real pressure on the Everton defence culminating in a Geertruida shot that wasn’t far over and it got a good ripple in the bar. We kept it up and had several efforts blocked but again Everton looked menacing when they occasionally broke. Pickford made a crucial stop on the line from a Ballard effort and Keane Cleared as we pummelled their goal but nothing would go in and it remained 0-1 after two minutes of added-time. After a poor opening quarter we improved considerably and I held out hope of at least a draw.

There were no changes as we kicked off again but there was very soon a change in the score when Xhaka smashed a powerful shot goalwards following a move down our left and after a generous deflection off Tarkowski it went into the net to send everyone in the bar doolally. A few minutes later Pickford did well to knock out a Le Fee effort for our first corner. Hume was booked and then Xhaka conceded a free-kick in a dangerous spot on the touchline on our right but we got it clear. Beto replaced Barry in the fifty-seventh but we were hanging back with any changes. We were applying all the pressure and another goal seemed a real possibility. Ballard made a crucial intervention on the half-way line on the hour and applause erupted in the bar. We soon won our second corner but it was beaten away. 

As we entered the final quarter things were looking good. A draw would be okay but a win was by no means beyond us. We still hadn’t made any changes and I wondered if we’d see Mayenda or Brobbey coming on before long. With twenty minutes on the clock Isidor went on one of his runs into the left side of their box but his shot went well over. We won another corner in the seventy-third while we actually had a decent shout for a penalty. VAR thought otherwise and the corner was cleared. Fifteen minutes to go and I still felt that we were going to get a second. Isidor miskicked a golden chance shortly afterwards but I can forgive him a lot. With eleven minutes to go we conceded our first corner, I think, but a free-kick was awarded in our favour and we were soon up the other end winning one of our own. It culminated in Mukiele heading well over and then clutching his face. We finally made a couple of changes with Talbi and Brobbey coming on for Traore and Isidor and I hoped of course for a repeat of their efforts at Stamford Bridge. With five minutes on the clock Roefs was called upon to make his first save in ages from a Mykolenko shot from the edge of the box.    

The six minutes of added-time was greeted with applause in the bar. We were left badly exposed in the ninety-fourth after an untypical Xhaka error but we managed to recover and it ended 1-1 to applause in the bar.