Sixty minutes into this game Everton were given a glimpse of their best route to Premier League survival.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin did not win the long ball that was sent in his direction. Nor did he finish the chance that followed. But in a cluster of seconds the instinct, quality and presence so sorely missing from this Everton side for so much of this year was on show.
Calvert-Lewin’s challenge for the high ball sent in his direction created enough discomfort in the Palace defence to prevent Marc Guehi from getting any significant distance on his headed clearance. Alex Iwobi, moved centrally as Sean Dyche abandoned the ill-fated 4-4-2 of recent weeks, burst from the middle of the five-man midfield to win the loose ball. He fed Calvert-Lewin.
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The 26-year-old had his back to goal but an extraordinary first touch saw him turn his man and set up the chance he fired just wide. Those opportunities will need to be converted over the coming weeks. But in a split second everything Everton have been missing during his absence was displayed in sharp focus.
The 90 minutes earned by Calvert-Lewin has to be the main storyline from an uneventful draw at Selhurst Park. Both sides had spells of possession and both had chances but neither could find a breakthrough. While the Blues slipped into the relegation zone as a result of this weekend’s scorelines, this was a point gained on Leeds United and Nottingham Forest, a clean sheet and the return of the player who could make the biggest difference to their cause over the final weeks of the season.
It was also a show of resilience that has been missing from recent performances. Mason Holgate, a surprise inclusion at right-back instead of Ben Godfrey but ahead of Nathan Patterson, was engaged in a running duel with Jordan Ayew for the majority of this game. The defender, making his first start under Dyche, was targeted by the hosts and kept busy. But when he was shown a yellow card midway through the first half after bringing Ayew down as he looked set to skip past him, the balance of power shifted in the attacker’s favour. With 10 minutes to go Holgate was adjudged to have brought Ayew down again and booked for the second time.
The red card set up a testing conclusion to this game for Everton, who were forced back under heavy pressure. Jordan Pickford saved from Eberechi Eze, Ayew fired over and Michael Keane, Godfrey and Dwight McNeil made vital interventions. In the end the Blues did just about enough to hang onto a useful point that could provide a platform for the escape from trouble that has to start soon.
The frantic final minutes as Palace looked to take advantage of their extra player followed a drab 80 minutes that had been low on quality. Michael Olise was busy and dangerous but did not unlock an Everton side that was more compact and solid with the extra man in midfield than it had been for the defeats against Manchester United and Fulham, even in the absence of the still injured Amadou Onana.
There were chances. The Blues were fortunate when Eze was unable to take down a ball over the top when better control would have seen him through on Pickford’s goal. He controlled and finished over Pickford in a similar position in the second half but on that occasion the offside flag halted his celebrations. Ayew thumped a free header over from eight yards in the early minutes but Pickford’s only real test was a scrambling low save to push a curling Olise effort behind.
Everton had opportunities, too, with Calvert-Lewin occupying defenders in a manner Dyche has been unable to deploy since he last had the striker available - his first game in charge back in early February. Iwobi forced a diving save from Sam Johnstone with a long- range volley and both McNeil and Calvert-Lewin made Johnstone work from distance in the first half. After a promising flurry at the start of the second half this game drifted towards a stalemate on the pitch to the soundtrack of a passionate away end making all the noise off it.
The red card changed the tempo but the Blues dug in for a point that comes with more positives than the Premier League table perhaps suggests.
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