Niggly, attritional and with almost nothing to stir the neutral soul, this goal-free tussle will live long only in the memory of Sean Dyche.
While it was ugly, this was a crucial point in Everton’s chase to beat the drop and their manager knows a thing or two about rolling up his sleeves to grind out a performance after building his 10-year stint at Burnley on them.
“I hope this is the sort of performance that will keep us up,” said Dyche after his team had ended Crystal Palace’s three-match winning run in a match which their manager, Roy Hodgson, noted, “will not go down in the annals “.
Yet, while they tumbled into the bottom three on goal difference, and are struggling to score goals, stopping leaking will be key for the rest of the season. “It was hard work for us,” Hodgson admitted, “but it always is against a limited, well-organized team.”
“I’m not bothered about the table,” Dyche sighed. “What’s really important is what goes on between now and the final table: performance levels, fitness, organization, strategy, the process we go through to make that table look right for us.” And he took succor from his team’s stoicism. “Yes we can play better, and yes there’s work to be done, but the hardest thing to measure in football is the opposition. Palace were buoyant and to be as secure as we were is great.”
Everton created little threat beyond Alex Iwobi’s first-half piledriver which Sam Johnstone saved smartly, but survived despite Mason Holgate, making a disastrous first Premier League start since August by foolishly picking up a second yellow card, causing his team to defend doughtily.
And defend rough they did, with Palace restricted to just one serious effort themselves, a long-range Eberechi Eze curler, which Jordan Pickford pawed aside. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, whose only goal of the season came in the reverse fixture, shot wide when Iwobi presented him with a chance and looked far from up to speed.
Yet, in other ways, this was a very different Everton. Defenders James Tarkowski and Michael Keane were imperious while Palace’s creative font, Eze, was stymied by Idrissa Gana Gueye and James Garner. Despite conceding a flurry of corners after losing Holgate, Everton hung on with the ease they had shown for the previous 80 and had a triumph of sorts.
“The reality is we have to win games,” said Dyche.