Everton 1-1 Brighton: Ashley Young scores late own goal as Sean Dyche’s side are held to draw despite Vitaliy Mykolenko’s effort
- Ashley Young scored an own goal as Everton drew at home to Brighton
- Vitaliy Mykolenko’s effort put the Toffees in the ascendancy at Goodison Park
- Mauricio Pochettino vs Alan Shearer – who is right? Listen to It’s All Kicking Off
If Everton’s players were wearing plain clothes and their faces not visible, you would still be able to pick this out as a Sean Dyche team. With just 20 per cent possession and 645 fewer passes than Brighton, Everton defended for their lives and took their chance at the other end.
Roberto De Zerbi’s team huffed and puffed with pass after pass after pass but could not break down the royal blue wall of Everton’s defence until deep into the second half, when Kaoru Mitoma’s cross took a cruel deflection off veteran Ashley Young and diverted in an equaliser.
A draw against Brighton should never be sniffed at but Everton’s players slumped to the ground at full-time as if they had just lost, with Dyche left to curse at how his team did not see out a win. The late equaliser denied the Toffees what would have been a sixth win in eight games.
Dyche’s team sat in a compact shape and allowed Brighton no real space to cause problems, while they were efficient in the turnover and caused problems with their powerful and speedy counter-attacks.
Talented Jarrad Branthwaite nullified the dangerous target man Evan Ferguson, while Dyche’s former Burnley colleague James Tarkowski put in another imperious defensive display. Mitoma versus Young looked like a mismatch but the veteran kept him quiet aside from the goal.
Ashley Young scored a late own goal as Everton drew 1-1 at home to Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma celebrates after Ashley Young’s own goal pulled his side level
Vitaliy Mykolenko celebrates after his goal in the first half had put Everton in the ascendancy
Mykolenko scored in the seventh minute as Everton took the lead against Brighton
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Jan Paul van Hecke (left) of Brighton competes for possession with Idrissa Gueye (right)
Everton defender James Tarkowski slides in to win the ball from Brighton’s Billy Gilmour
MATCH FACTS
EVERTON (4-2-3-1): Pickford 6; Young 7 (Patterson 90), Tarkowski 8.5, Branthwaite 8, Mykolenko 8; Garner 7, Gueye 7; Harrison 7, Doucoure 7.5, McNeil 7.5; Calvert-Lewin 7 (Beto 90).
Subs not used: Virginia, Lonergan, Keane, Danjuma, Godfrey, Chermiti, Dobbin.
Booked: Gueye, Doucoure, Branthwaite, Tarkowski.
Manager: Sean Dyche 7.5.
BRIGHTON (4-3-3): Verbruggen 6; Veltman 5, Van Hecke 6, Dunk 5, Milner 6 (Buonanotte 79); Gross 6, Gilmour 5 (Dahoud 68, 6), Lallana 5 (Pedro 46, 6); Adingra 6 (Julio 90), Ferguson 6 (Fati 67, 6), Mitoma 7.
Subs not used: Steele, Lamptey, Webster, Baleba.
Booked: Gilmour, Dunk.
Manager: Roberto De Zerbi 6.5.
Attendance: 38,683.
Referee: Tim Robinson 4.
This was a fascinating tactical battle with a complete contrast in styles from the two managers which served as a reminder that there is no correct way to play football. Everton were happy to cede possession, with Brighton aiming to suffocate their hosts with passing.
By half-time, Albion had completed 442 passes, the most by any team in the first half of a Premier League match for nearly two years – Manchester City against Watford. They had a staggering 84 per cent of the ball in that opening 45 minutes.
But all they had to show for it was a single shot on target, with Jordan Pickford almost a spectator as the well-drilled team-mates in front of him carried out their game-plan to the letter and did not allow Brighton any space to cause any serious danger.
The plan to sit back and frustrate was significantly boosted when Everton took an early lead after just seven minutes. Though they rarely saw the ball, they were incredibly efficient when attacking and Dominic Calvert-Lewin gave Brighton’s defenders an afternoon to forget.
Vitalii Mykolenko started and finished the move to put Everton ahead. A potential foul on Adam Lallana was missed and the Everton full-back exploited space with an underlapping run. His first shot was thwarted by Bart Verbruggen but the rebounded effort deflected in off Lewis Dunk.
After helping the ball into his own goal, Dunk thought he had atoned for his misfortune minutes later when his left-footed volley bounced in off the crossbar. The lines were drawn and, three minutes later, with the game ready to restart from the centre circle, the goal was chalked off.
That was a reprieve for Everton as shoddy marking allowed Dunk far too much space in the penalty area from a set-piece. But they used it as a wake-up call and Dyche’s side rarely allowed Brighton a kick in dangerous areas from that point on.
Albion continued to dominate the ball without creating any clear-cut chances, with Ansu Fati and Joao Pedro both being sent on in search of a goal. The latter had a good opening but was blocked at point-blank range by the impressive Tarkowski.
And just as it looked like Everton were going to see out what would have been one of the best wins of the Dyche era, Mitoma’s attempted cross hit Young and deflected past Pickford to give Albion an undeserved point.
Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite is left dejected after his team dropped points late on
Dwight McNeil of Everton attempts to keep the ball under pressure from Joel Veltman
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