A late goal from substitute Idrissa Gueye helped Everton beat Crystal Palace in a thrilling Premier League game at Selhurst Park.
The away side took the lead in the first minute. A long ball was played forward and not properly cleared and Jack Harrison chipped an inviting cross into the box and Vitaliy Mykolenko headed in from close range.
Palace were level four minutes later when Eberechi Eze went on a surging run into the Everton penalty area before being brought down by Jarrad Branthwaite. The England midfielder picked himself up and slotted the penalty confidently past Jordan Pickford.
Everton retook the lead in the 49th minute. Mykolenko hit a volley from the edge of the area that struck Sam Johnstone’s post and Abdoulaye Doucoure was on hand to tap into an empty net from close range.
Palace thought they had done enough to draw the match when Odsonne Edouard took advantage of a mix-up between James Tarkowski and Pickford, but that was before substitute Gueye scored late on to take all three points.
The result means Everton are unbeaten in four games in all competitions and eight points clear of the relegation zone.
The match between these two sides was played at a breathtaking pace and was not short of incidents.
Everton caused Palace a lot of problems with their crosses into the box and Dominic Calvert-Lewin was denied a goal in the first half by an excellent intervention from Joel Ward when the scores were level.
That was before Palace thought they should have had a second penalty when Branthwaite challenged Eze, but, after a lengthy video assistant referee check, Eze was booked for simulation.
Everton started the second half like they did the first period and scored early again through Doucoure before Edouard’s leveller.
Gueye then snatched all three points with the winning goal in the 86th minute. The midfielder was played through on goal by Doucoure and slotted the ball through Tyrick Mitchell’s legs and into the corner of the net to win the game.
The victory is only Everton’s second in eight visits to Selhurst Park and continues their run of good form.
Everton on form
In his news conference before this match Everton manager Sean Dyche said their performances were starting to get the points they deserved, and he was proved correct again after this match.
The Toffees came flying out of the traps at the start of the game and took advantage of some sloppy defending to take an early lead.
Dyche’s side had a clear game plan and their crosses into the Palace area caused numerous problems with Calvert-Lewin and Dwight McNeil going close from them.
Dyche made the decision to bring off Amadou Onana at half-time for Gueye and that substitution was rewarded with the winning goal.
Pickford had to make a good save from Eze, but Everton did enough to get over the line and take three points.
Eze shows reason why Palace pushed for new contract
The news that Eze had signed a new three-and-a-half-year contract was celebrated as a major piece of business for the club and, after watching his performance against Everton, you could see why.
Eze scored 10 goals and had four assists last season, but this campaign has seen him step up to fill the void left by talisman Wilfried Zaha, who joined Galatasaray in the summer.
The majority of Palace’s attacking play flowed through Eze and he scored his penalty on the back of one of his trademark dribbles.
On another day he could have been awarded another spot-kick and not given a yellow card for simulation, with the decision deemed not to be a clear and obvious error.
The 25-year-old’s performance was a positive for Palace in defeat but the result leaves them with just win from their past five games.
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Crystal Palace
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Squad number1Player nameJohnstone
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Squad number2Player nameWard
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Squad number16Player nameAndersen
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Squad number6Player nameGuéhi
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Squad number3Player nameMitchell
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Squad number19Player nameHughes
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Squad number8Player nameLerma
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Squad number9Player nameJ Ayew
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Squad number10Player nameEze
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Squad number15Player nameSchlupp
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Squad number22Player nameÉdouard
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Squad number7Player nameOlise
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Squad number14Player nameMateta
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Squad number29Player nameAhamada
Everton
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Squad number1Player namePickford
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Squad number18Player nameYoung
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Squad number6Player nameTarkowski
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Squad number32Player nameBranthwaite
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Squad number19Player nameMykolenko
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Squad number11Player nameHarrison
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Squad number37Player nameGarner
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Squad number8Player nameOnana
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Squad number7Player nameMcNeil
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Squad number16Player nameDoucouré
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Squad number9Player nameCalvert-Lewin
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Squad number2Player namePatterson
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Squad number14Player nameBeto
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Squad number27Player nameGueye
Line-ups
Crystal Palace
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Johnstone
- 2Ward
- 16Andersen
- 6Guéhi
- 3Mitchell
- 19HughesSubstituted forAhamadaat 89′minutes
- 8Lerma
- 9J Ayew
- 10EzeBooked at 24mins
- 15SchluppSubstituted forOliseat 67′minutes
- 22ÉdouardSubstituted forMatetaat 83′minutes
Substitutes
- 4Holding
- 7Olise
- 11França de Oliveira
- 14Mateta
- 17Clyne
- 26Richards
- 28Doucouré
- 29Ahamada
- 31Matthews
Everton
Formation 4-4-1-1
- 1Pickford
- 18YoungSubstituted forPattersonat 90′minutes
- 6Tarkowski
- 32Branthwaite
- 19MykolenkoBooked at 90mins
- 11Harrison
- 37GarnerBooked at 89mins
- 8OnanaBooked at 88minsSubstituted forGueyeat 45′minutes
- 7McNeil
- 16DoucouréBooked at 45mins
- 9Calvert-LewinSubstituted forGomes Betuncalat 77′minutes
Substitutes
- 2Patterson
- 5Keane
- 10Danjuma
- 12Neves Virgínia
- 14Gomes Betuncal
- 22Godfrey
- 27Gueye
- 28Ramalho Chermiti
- 61Dobbin
- Referee:
- Samuel Barrott
- Attendance:
- 25,103
Live Text
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Match ends, Crystal Palace 2, Everton 3.
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Second Half ends, Crystal Palace 2, Everton 3.
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Vitalii Mykolenko (Everton) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Michael Olise (Crystal Palace) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Foul by Vitalii Mykolenko (Everton).
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Attempt missed. Michael Olise (Crystal Palace) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Joel Ward with a cross.
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Attempt missed. Beto (Everton) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Jack Harrison.
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Offside, Crystal Palace. Sam Johnstone tries a through ball, but Jordan Ayew is caught offside.
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Corner, Crystal Palace. Conceded by Jarrad Branthwaite.
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Marc Guéhi (Crystal Palace) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Foul by Abdoulaye Doucouré (Everton).
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Substitution, Everton. Nathan Patterson replaces Ashley Young.
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Substitution, Crystal Palace. Naouirou Ahamada replaces Will Hughes.
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James Garner (Everton) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by James Garner (Everton).
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Amadou Onana (Everton) is shown the yellow card for excessive celebration.
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Jefferson Lerma (Crystal Palace) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Goal! Crystal Palace 2, Everton 3. Idrissa Gueye (Everton) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner.