Premier League
Everton scored twice in the second half thanks to a piece of brilliance from Richarlison and late opportunism from Dominic Calvert-Lewin to claim a 3-1 win over Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Saturday and move up to seventh in the Premier League.
After Christian Benteke had cancelled out Bernard’s opener with his first Palace goal since April, Richarlison picked up the ball on the halfway line, drove into the area and unleashed an unstoppable shot for his ninth league goal of the season.
Although Palace began promisingly, with Patrick van Aanholt’s scruffy shot hitting the post, Everton went ahead after 18 minutes when Theo Walcott created space to deliver a perfect cross for Bernard’s controlled volley.
That was Walcott’s last meaningful contribution as he soon departed with a jarred knee to be replaced by Djibril Sidibe but only after a curious episode saw the Frenchman briefly disappear down the tunnel, apparently in search of a second sock.
The visitors, who have not won since Boxing Day, struggled to deal with Richarlison’s movement and power but forced their way back into contention when Everton keeper Jordan Pickford somehow allowed Benteke’s shot to roll under his body in the 51st to end a goal drought that had lasted 1,476 minutes.
Seven minutes later Richarlison scored while Pickford saved point-blank from Benteke, who also hit the post, before Calvert-Lewin put the game beyond Palace in the 88th when he reacted quickest to net after Richarlison’s header hit the bar.
– A bizarre own goal from Watford’s Adrian Mariappa allowed relegation rivals Brighton & Hove Albion to take a precious point in a 1-1 draw at the Amex Stadium that left both sides facing a continued struggle to stay in the Premier League.
With the visitors apparently heading for victory, Brighton substitute Alireza Jahanbakhsh drilled the ball across goal but, under no pressure, Mariappa fired past his own keeper on 78 minutes.
The home side, who have not won this year, could hardly believe their luck after seldom threatening – or even mustering a shot on goal.
Abdoulaye Doucoure gave Watford the lead on 19 minutes after Aaron Mooy’s ambitious through ball forward rebounded into his path. The Frenchman sped forward to the area, firing an unstoppable shot into the top right corner of the Brighton net.
It was Doucoure’s third goal in six league games — as many as in his previous 34. Brighton squandered promising first-half chances with Mooy and Leandro Trossard firing high, and lacked the creativity to unsettle the visitors’ massed defence.
Brighton brought on top scorer Neil Maupay for Dan Burn at the start of the second half and later turned to overhead-kick specialist Jahanbakhsh, who eventually made an unexpected difference.
The goal kept Watford in the relegation zone on 24 points, three adrift of 15th-placed Brighton. Both teams now have a two-week winter break.
Watford keeper Ben Foster said: “The way the goal went in was very disappointing. Maps (Mariappa) is not trying to score an own goal, but that’s football. It can go against you sometimes.
“The way we dropped back is a symptom of where we are in the league. We tried to defend what we had and thought we could weather the storm.
Substitute John Lundstram grabbed the 84th-minute winner as promoted Sheffield United continued their unexpected bid for European football with a 2-1 Premier League win over struggling Bournemouth on Sunday. Chris Wilder’s side, expected by many to be battling relegation on their return to the top flight after 12 years, find themselves in fifth place, two points behind Chelsea who occupy the fourth Champions League qualification spot.
The Blades had to come from behind to get the three points at Bramall Lane however, with Bournemouth, fighting hard at the wrong end of the table, determined from the outset.
Callum Wilson put Eddie Howe’s team ahead in the 13th minute, firing home after a low drive from Harry Wilson was blocked.
But United levelled on the stroke of halftime when Bournemouth failed to clear a corner and from the resulting scramble, Billy Sharp blasted in from close range.
United keeper Dean Henderson did superbly to keep out a well-struck shot from Ryan Fraser, while at the other end, another scramble saw a Lys Mousset effort blocked.
Two of the United substitutes combined to decide the outcome with Mousset finding Lundstram inside the box and the 25-year-old did well to collect and clip the ball home.
That raises the possibility of the promoted club making a real push for Champions League qualification although Wilder was quick to play down such talk.
“I’m sure when we were coming off our fans were singing that we’re safe. We’re not there yet but there’s no let-up from us. There are no comfortable footballers in our changing room – they all have something to prove,” he said.
“It was a great comeback. I thought the players grew into game and towards halftime we were creating pressure and momentum.
“We have just rolled on and taken the defeats on the chin. We’ll keep going. We have 39 points which is fabulous. We want to achieve something this season. We won’t take our foot off the gas. Our performance was one of belief and drive. There was a real drive about the players after going a goal down,” added Wilder.
The result left Bournemouth in 16th place, two points above the relegation zone.
“In both halves we sat in and were good in our structures. When we get the lead in these types of games we need to defend better,” Howe said.
“It takes all the polish off. There were a lot of good bits but not enough to get a result today and we needed it away from home.”
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