So Arsene Wenger was right. He predicted Everton would falter as the pressure increased but not even Arsenal’s manager would have foreseen such a startling blunder at the first hurdle.
From knowing five wins from their final five games would hand them a place in the Champions League, Everton are back to relying on favours after they were unceremoniously flattened by Crystal Palace at Goodison Park.
Palace were brilliant in extending their winning spree to a fourth game, with goals by Jason Puncheon, Scott Dann and Cameron Jerome giving them a victory that was in no way flattering. They capitalised on their hosts’ nerves and an unusal team selection and left knowing they will be playing in the Barclays Premier League again next year.
It has been a theme of Roberto Martinez’s first season at Goodison that he has been prepared to take risks, and the arrival of the teamsheet on Wednesday night showed he was willing to gamble again.
Counter attack: Cameron Jerome scores Palace's third during the 3-2 victory over Everton
Leaving it late: Kevin Mirallas scores late on to give Everton a chance of getting back into the match
At the double: Scott Dann heads downwards to increase Palace's lead against top four hopefuls Everton
Team effort: Joel Ward (second left) hugs goalscorer Dann following the centre back's header
MATCH FACTS
Everton (4-2-3-1): Howard 7: Coleman 5, Stones 5, Distin 5, Baines 6: Barkley 5, Barry 6 (Osman 59mins 6): Mirallas 6, McGeady 4 (McCarthy59mins 6), Deulofeu 4 (Naismith 46mins): Lukaku 5.
Subs: Robles, Hibbert, Garbutt, Alcaraz.
Scorer: Naismith, 61, Mirallas, 85.
Booked: Baines.
Manager: Roberto Martinez, 5.5.
Crystal Palace (4-4-1-1): Speroni 8, Mariappa 7, (Parr, 68, 6), Dann 7, Delaney 6, Ward 7, Puncheon 8.5, Jedinak 8, Ledley 8, Bolaise 8, Cahamakh 7.5 (Murray, 80, 6), Jerome 7.5, (O'Keefe, 76, 6).
Subs: McCarthy, Ince, O'Keefe, Gayle, Hennessey.
Scorer: Puncheon, 23, Dann, 49, Jerome, 73.
Booked: Delaney, Puncheon.
Manager: Tony Pulis, 8.
Referee: Andre Marriner, 7.
M-O-M: Jason Puncheon.
Player ratings from Dominic King at Goodison Park
The idea was clearly to attack from the first whistle and that meant James McCarthy, who has excelled in a holding midfield role since following his manager to Merseyside from Wigan last September, dropped to the bench.
In came attack-minded flyers Kevin Mirallas, Gerard Deulofeu and Aidan McGeady as Ross Bark-ley dropped back alongside Gareth Barry. At times during the opening exchanges, Everton looked like they were playing 2-4-4, so eager were they to go forward.
They had plenty of the ball early on but the closest they went to scoring was when McGeady fizzed a rising drive from 20 yards just over the bar.
Having Mirallas, McGeady and Deulofeu on at the same time, though, was always going to leave Everton’s full backs exposed and that is what happened in the 23rd minute when Palace took the lead.
Yannick Bolasie surged past Leighton Baines, brushing the England defender aside before powering in a cross that Tim Howard could only push into the penalty area.
Marouane Chamakh reacted quickest and he touched the ball into the path of Puncheon, who rattled a left-foot drive back beyond Howard’s despairing dive.
As Palace manager Tony Pulis celebrated by punching the air, the collective intake of breath around the stadium showed the seriousness of the situation.
Strike: Jason Puncheon shoots past Everton trio Sylvain Distin, Gareth Barry and Seamus Coleman to score
Shock lead: Crystal Palace wideman Puncheon fired the Eagles into the lead at Goodison Park
Back in it: Everton substitute Steven Naismith nips in to shoot past Julian Speroni on the hour mark
Brave: Palace defender Joel Ward stops on loan Barcelona frontman Gerard Deulofeu from moving forward
Palace’s form this spring has been deeply impressive, a testament to the outstanding work Pulis has overseen since he replaced Ian Holloway last autumn.
No player has done more in the last three games to ensure the club will be playing in the top flight next season than Puncheon. This impressive strike was his fourth in that time and was dispatched with supreme confidence.
If
the goal inspired Palace, it visibly rattled Everton and it served to
increase the anxieties of the home crowd. Goodison can be the most
intimidating arena in the country when the mood is right but, equally,
it can be a stadium that magnifies tension.
Every pass that went astray or shot that failed to hit the target last night was greeted with louder and louder groans.
Ganging up: Damien Delaney, Miles Jedinak (centre) and Joe Ledley (right) stop Romelu Lukaku in his tracks
Going to ground: Ross Barkley is felled by Ledley as Palace pair Delaney and Jedinak look on
Take me on! Everton's young defender John Stones jockeys Crystal Palace striker Marouane Chamakh
Big tackle: Stones slides in and makes a fully committed tackle as Chamakh tries to keep possession
On the touchline: Crystal Palace manager Tony Pulis barks orders as Roberto Martinez looks on
The home crowd’s worries could have been exacerbated further in the 34th minute when the outstanding Bolasie outmuscled Seamus Coleman, who had been left isolated by Deulofeu’s failure to track back. Bolasie cut in to thump a shot that skidded beyond Howard but thudded against the post.
Still the danger wasn’t clear and the rebound fell at the feet of Jerome but he didn’t react quickly enough and succeeded only in stabbing his shot wide. Cue more groans and shouts of frustration.
All Everton managed to muster in response in the first half was a shot from Mirallas, which sailed comfortably over keeper Julian Speroni’s bar after he had worked an opening inside the area.
The
vibrancy, the sureness of touch and certainty in possession were
nowhere to be seen. The interval came at the right time for them and
offered the chance for Martinez to regroup.
Stretching: Leighton Baines sticks a foot out in a bid to dispossess Puncheon during Wednesday's clash
Backtrack: Seamus Coleman heads back towards goal under pressure from Palace winger Yannick Bolasie
Inevitably, Martinez made a change. Off went Deulofeu, on went Steven Naismith, so often a hero from the bench this season. But Everton’s difficult task became almost impossible within minutes of the restart when Palace deservedly extended their advantage with a goal that left Martinez shaking his head in disbelief.
After Howard had beaten away a shot from Joe Ledley for a corner, Bolasie delivered the set-piece into the danger zone and Dann - a former Liverpool season-ticket holder - left John Stones and powered a header into the Park End net.
All around the stadium, heads were placed in hands.
But then the fightback started. Martinez replaced McGeady and Barry on the hour, introducing McCarthy and Leon Osman, and within a minute they had pulled a goal back, when Naismith bundled in Baines’s knockdown. Suddenly the old ground was shaking.
However, Puncheon skipped past McCarthy in the 73rd minute and rolled in Jerome, who finished with panache to restore Palace’s two-goal lead.
Despite Mirallas’s late consolation, Everton’s top-four hopes may have disappeared.
Minutes applause: Everton and Crystal Palace players mark the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster
Rival: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers (right) was all smiles as he attended the clash at Goodison
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