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David Moyes could not contain himself. As the ball hit the back of the net after the substitute Beto had bundled in the equaliser in the seventh minute of injury time, the Everton manager set off. Moyes is 63 in April, but he sprinted on to the pitch in a moment of sheer delight as Brighton’s players dropped to their knees in despair.
Somehow, Everton’s unbeaten record here that stretches back to 2019 is still intact. It had seemed a goal from Pascal Gross would be enough for Brighton to claim victory at the sixth attempt after they had spurned a number of chances in the first half. But while it is one thing to plan how you are going to overcome a team managed by Moyes, it is not quite so easy in practice.
“The only difference between me and Pleaty is that I got booked,” said Moyes when it was suggested his celebration was reminiscent of David Pleat’s jig across Manchester City’s Maine Road pitch when Luton avoided relegation in 1983. “Who wants to see managers getting booked for celebrating? It means they’ve got nothing about them at all. No thoughts about what football means, or what it means to the managers. I’m still shaking my head.”
Asked if he would do it again, he said: “I bloody will do it again. Actually, f I had been a bit more mobile, I might have done a knee slide. That would have only got me a yellow as well so I might as well have gone the whole hog.”
For Brighton this was another bitter pill to swallow after last Saturday’s last-ditch defeat at Fulham. It is now one win in their past 11 Premier League games and hopes of another European campaign are quickly evaporating. They left the pitch to boos, although they were mainly directed at the referee, Chris Kavanagh, for playing beyond the allotted six minutes of added time.
Fabian Hürzeler refused to blame the officials, but admitted his disappointment that they could not see the game out after his captain, Lewis Dunk, failed to clear one last cross into Brighton’s penalty area. “In one moment we weren’t alive and this cost us the game,” he said. “It feels painful but we can either feel sorry for ourselves or choose to go again.”
Moyes deployed the 6ft 5in Jarrad Branthwaite at left-back and the England defender impressed on his first start of the season. Michael Keane was back from suspension to make up an intimidating-looking back four alongside James Tarkowski and Jake O’Brien.
But Brighton were far too slick for them in the opening exchanges and almost went ahead twice in the opening three minutes. Gross was unlucky to see his volley from Ferdi Kadioglu’s cross deflect wide before Danny Welbeck’s improvised backheel was well saved by Jordan Pickford. Moyes was left scratching his head in disbelief when Welbeck directed a corner just past the post under barely any pressure from Everton’s defenders.
They were bystanders again when Karou Mitoma brilliantly exchanged passes with Welbeck, but could only poke his shot wide of the far post with Pickford already committed.
Brighton could not sustain the intensity of the opening half an hour and it was Hürzeler’s turn to look concerned as his tired-looking side struggled to recapture their rhythm. He exchanged some angry words with the fourth official as the half-time whistle sounded.
Everton started the second half with far more attacking intent and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was not far away after being set up by a clever flick from Thierno Barry. Branthwaite headed wide from a long throw and was then booked for an agricultural challenge on Ayari that left the Sweden international requiring lengthy treatment.
Dewsbury-Hall should have broken the deadlock when he latched on toBarry’s cross, only for Bart Verbruggen to save well with his feet. Against the run of play, Brighton finally managed to find a way past Pickford when Mitoma dummied Yasin Ayari’s cross and Gross – who rejoined Brighton this month from Borussia Dortmund having spent seven years here this first spell – made no mistake.
Mitoma had a goal ruled out for offside and it proved to be a vital moment. O’Brien’s shot was saved by Verbruggen but the ball fell straight to Beto to send Moyes off on his victory lap.
