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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Connor O'Neill

Jose Mourinho proved right as Goodison Park delivers greatest Everton assist

May 19 is a date that will forever be etched into the memory of everyone associated with Everton Football Club.

The dramatic comeback victory over Crystal Palace was about as good as it gets for Everton supporters in attendance. Bedlam is the only word to describe the scenes.

Goodison Park is a cathedral of English football and a Liverpool institution. Tears will be shed when the Blues move to Bramley-Moore Dock in a couple of years.

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From Dixie Dean scoring his 60th goal of the season to that famous Bayern Munich night, Goodison has witnessed some breathtaking moments over the years.

And it was after that famous night against Bayern that Howard Kendall famously remarked: "Get the ball into the box, the Gwladys Street will suck the ball into the net."

In many people’s eyes it was Goodison’s greatest ever assist. An assist that sent Everton on their way to European glory.

But Thursday was another game to add to the list. Granted a club like the Blues should never have been in position they were in, but they were. And Goodison delivered - just like it always does.

There aren't many stadiums in world football that can generate a cauldron of noise like 'The Grand Old Lady' can, and as Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s header hit the back of the net, she erupted in joy.

By the end of the game, the stands emptied and the pitch filled with people. Blue smoke clogged the air as supporters celebrated survival and the relief that such an achievement brings.

“The support was so important. We needed them tonight, at 2-0 it was easy to expect the worst,” Lampard said post-match. “But they've been doing it for a long time, since the Chelsea game [1-0 win on 1 May]. Again, the atmosphere was another level.

“They [supporters] want success and when they see a team giving it, they react instantly. Those moments were priceless."

And the Everton boss isn’t the first person to be impressed by the atmosphere of Goodison. His old manager Jose Mourinho once remarked how special the place can be, too.

He said: “I love to play Everton, especially at Goodison Park, where the atmosphere is magnificent.”

Goodison will sadly be no more in a couple of years and Evertonians should savour every last second they get inside the place. There is nowhere else quite like it.

It is the type of place where no matter what Blues fans are served up, they still return the next chance they get to do it all again.

Some may dispute this, but Goodison claimed its greatest ever assist on Thursday night. Memories were created that will last forever as the Gwladys Street sucked another goal in.

Plenty of figures have emerged about just how much Calvert-Lewin’s goal was worth to the club. The answer: it was priceless.

And without the 'The Grand Old Lady' and Everton supporters, the club would probably have been playing Championship football next season.

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