Match Report

Everton made their expected exit from the FA Cup at the hands of a superior Manchester United side at Old Trafford but any positives gleaned from an unexpectedly plucky performance were largely negated by injury to Alex Iwobi.

It took just three minutes for the Blues to fall behind in what already felt like a hugely difficult game for them to win but they battled back to go into the half-time interval all square and could count themselves unfortunate that an excellent second-half equaliser was chalked off before a late penalty put the tie to bed in the hosts' favour.

Conor Coady scored at both ends, his clumsy own goal proving to be the winner for United even before Marcus Rashford converted from the spot in stoppage time but Frank Lampard, already under enormous pressure prior to today, would have taken solace from his players' display before Iwobi was stretchered off less than five minutes into the second half.

The midfielder injured his ankle in a challenge by Tyrell Malacia and left the ground on crutches ahead of a scan of the damage that Lampard hopes won't be as extensive as first feared.

With Nathan Patterson already out of action with knee ligament damage, the Everton boss altered the line-up that started Tuesday's debacle against Brighton by drafting Seamus Coleman into the starting XI and restoring Ben Godfrey to a central defensive trio.

Dwight McNeil and Dominic Calvert-Lewin dropped back to the bench as Neal Maupay and Amadou Onana returned from suspension while Anthony Gordon was available again off the bench as he recovers from illness.

With speculation about his future rife in the run-up to the game, Lampard needed a big performance from his charges but they put themselves behind the proverbial eight ball before the tie had really had a chance to get going. 

The ball was lost by Iwobi in the centre-circle and though Godfrey showed Marcus Rashford the outside, he failed to keep pace with the England international and with too few midfielders tracking back, Vitalii Mykolenko was caught covering two opponents and chose to cover the wrong one which left Antony free to tap in at the far post.

A cheap giveaway by Jordan Pickford resulted in a chance for Anthony Martial to double the lead but he dragged the resulting shot wide and Casimero was also off target with an ambitious effort a few minutes later.

Everton levelled the tie in the 14th minute, however, after Demarai Gray had rattled the post and seen his shot come back off David de Gea for a corner.

That set-piece ended with an excellent piece of play by Onana to hold off Casimero and play in Maupay whose drilled shot to the near post got caught under De Gea's feet and as the goalkeeper dallied in embarrassing fashion, Coady pounced to poke the loose ball over the goal line.

United were almost back in front a couple of minutes later when Godfrey again too hesitatant in backing off  Rashford and allowing him to drive past him down the outside again but this time Pickford made a terrific save to deny Martial.

And the England keeper was called into action again just past the half hour mark when awful control by Iwobi in the opposition half ended with Pickford having to push away a bouncing effort from Rashford before Christian Eriksen ended the first half with a whipped shot that narrowly cleared the bar.

Iwobi's afternoon came to an end just two minutes after the restart for the second period when he hared away on the counter and was tackled by Malacia, his ankle rolling awkwardly into the turf leaving him writhing in pain before being carried off in a considerable amount of pain.

Two minutes later, the home side restored their lead and, again, it was poor defending as Rashford drilled the ball across goal from the same part of the box as the first goal but this time Coady stuck out a leg to intercept but simply guided the ball into his own net instead.

Antony had a tame shot saved after cutting inside Mykolenko and Rashford forced Pickford to palm a dipping drive over the bar while, at the other end, the Ukrainian almost bagged an equaliser following excellent work by Iwobi's replacement, Abdoulaye Doucouré, and a low cross from Coleman but he couldn't make proper contact.

The visitors thought they had pegged United back again with a quarter of an hour to go when Calvert-Lewin finished a brilliant move by converting at the near post but a check by the Video Assistant Referee found Gray to have been fractionally offside in the build-up.

The winger had expertly heel-flicked a return pass past his marker for Coleman to drive towards the byline and cross to the near post where Calvert-Lewin chested it over the line but the celebrations of the magnificent travelling fans were killed by the VAR decision.

Pickford finger-tipped a late free-kick from Rashford over the bar after Onana had clattered through Lisandro Martinez before United countered again in injury time as Everton pushed for a second goal and Godfrey was adjudged to have fouled Alejandro Garnacho in the box. Rashford comverted the resulting penalty and Everton's FA Cup run was over before it had really begun.

Lampard won't have got the result to have convinced his superiors that he should definitely continue as the Toffees' manager and while there were plenty of frustrating individual errors and poor decisions made by his players, he will have been pleased with the spirit and application shown.

Nevertheless, his team haven't won a match in any competition since October and the calls for his head will continue to rise in volume the longer that miserable sequence continues. The next two games, against fellow-strugglers Southampton and West Ham, could be pivotal for the future of both the club and the manager.

Lyndon Lloyd

Matchday Updates

Everton travel to Old Trafford this evening to take on Manchester United in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup.

Amadou Onana is available for selection after his one-match suspension, while Patterson is out for the next 6 weeks, while Isaac Price, Tom Cannon, and Stan Mills were all back with the U21s, playing West Ham in Southport tonight. 

Calvert-Lewin suffered 'some fatigue' during the big defeat to Brighton on Tuesday and is not risked for the full game but is available from the bench.  

Everton got things going but Rashford was soon testing Onanaa down the left, the Everton man putting in an excellent tackle. Iwobi then had to win the ball back and Gray advanced only to lose the ball in a crowd. 

Man Utd then scored in only their second attack, Rashford playing in a low cross for Anthony to convert sliding in at the far post with Pickford caught out  badly by the ball played across him.

A dreadful clearance by Pickford was jumped on by Martial and lashed inches wide as Everton looked to implode. But the Blues tried to play their game, Coady with a little too adventurous ball forward to Coleman. 

It broke down again but Everton's defence handled the counter better this time and tried again to play the ball forward, albeit far too slowly, but at least they had some possession. Iwobi tried to advance but passed it straight to Casemmiro and the Red Devils swarmed again. 

Everton were surprisingly given space to advance again and Gray looked like he had scored but it hit the post, De Gea's back and then behind into the side netting. The corner seemed to be cleared but Everton came back with great work from Onana and somehow Coady converted after Maupay's brilliant rescue shot along the goalline that  De Gea tried and failed to save by the post with his legs... Remarkable!

The Blues tried to build slowly again, and seemed to be doing well until Onana gave it up very cheaply and Martial stormed forward, Pickford incredibly saving the low shot this time, and the Blues clearing the corner. 

Two more Man Utd shots had to be blocked before Everton could move the ball forward again but any pace was completely lacking. Onana was sandbagged by three United players after trying to give the ball away and he was caught by Casemiro. 

More slow and pointless Blues possession went nowhere but at least denied the home side the ball. They won it back only to give it away again in midfield, but recovered this time. Another painfully slow attack moved forward until Mykolenko overhit his through ball way too hard. 

Gray was fouled by Casemiro as he looked to advance. Godfrey and Rashford had a little flare-up after wrestling over the touch-line. But the Blues gave it away yet again until Fernandez put in a nasty foul on Onana after he stole the ball, and was booked.

There was some desperate Blues defending until they could break but Gray could not do anything with the ball and Iowbi gave it away to Rashford and he got forward to rasp in a shot that Pickford had to parry away. 

Everton attacked again through Gray with Mykolenko overlapping well and crossing in and Coleman set up Maupay but he declined to shoot and lost the ball.

Another Man Utd attack almost came close to creating a chance through Varane but the ball was cleared away. Coleman was bizarrely playing right winger for the out-ball, mistiming his run.  

The Reds worked another attack and this time Eriksen came so close with a superb shot that curled inches over the top left corner. The pace of the game briefly slowed as Man Utd looked for an opening and when they did, the Blues forced a turnover and advanced a bit faster but Gray mishit his pass to end the adventure. 

Rashford worked another opportunity for a shot but it was blocked and Gray was the outball this time until Maupay was fouled. But Everton played the free-kick sideways and backwards, looking for trouble until they gave up the turnover. 

Into 2 minutes of added time, and Everton kept putting themselves under pressure, Martial forcing a corner that Shaw took and Tarkowski headed clear. But still Man Utd were invited to work it around again, as Everton failed to get the ball upfield.  

A breathless first half, a real cup-tie, but what were Everton doing in the first 5 minutes?

The game was restarted by the home side who staged another threatening attack straight away but Everton stalled them, then broke with Iwobi leading the charge but Malacia chasing him down with a scything tackle from the side, getting the ball and very heavily damaging Iwobi's ankle. But apparently no foul. Iwobi left in agony on the stretcher, Doucouré (not ready) on in his place after 3 minutes more.

After the restart Rashfrd bamboozled Coleman and Coady poked the cross into his own net. Disaster.

With the lead theirs again, the home side looked to attack more confidently, forcing Everton to defend in numbers, Rashford a massive and persistent threat. Onana produced a fantastic tackle on martial but it was only a brief respite before the Blues were defending again, pretty solidly.

Pickford was forced to kick long but Maupay could not hold it up and Man Utd came back to win a corner that Everton cleared. Godfrey then caught Rashord badly and another perilous attack picked and probed for a way through the blue line. 

Man Utd were now looking to exert a press that Everton broke with Doucoure but he just did not want to shoot, Coleman's cross coming in but Mykolenko's shot was blocked.

Doucouré blocked Rashford, setting up a dangerous free-kick with Fernades hitting a tremendous shot that Pickford palmed over. The corner was worked around until Doucoure was sucked into another foul on Rashford and a booking. Maupay (who had played well) was replaced by Calvert-Lewin.

Coleman did well to stop Garanoco. Then a strange moment when Calvert-Lewin seemed to have a chance to get past De Gea outside his area but was far too tepid.  But Gray got hold of the ball from Coleman and got to the byline, crossing in for Calvert-Lewin to bundle the ball into the net. But Gray was adjudged marginally offside by the VAR. 

Everton pushed forward again but Gana tried a ridiculous shot from 35 yards, miles over. Gordon and McNeil entered the fray for the final frenetic 10 minutes. A cross aimed at Calvert-Lewin was easily cut out by his marker. Another round of subs killed any tempo Everton had been building. 

What looked like a great move down the right saw Doucoure again stall his cross and any chance to play in a ball for Calvert-Lewin visibly evaporated. Then, Rashford tried to dance his way in at the other end, Mykoleno giving up the corner. 

Onana caught Martinez with a poor challenge, setting up a fearsome opportunity for Rashford that Pickford helped over the bar. Everton worked the ball up well but Gray could only scuff his low shot. 

Everton attacked again with Neill and Gana down the left, winning a corner in added time. Gray swung it in and Godfrey tried to get it back for a header on goal but it went off McTominay and out... but no corner!

Rashford got free and went on a charge, Godfrey in with a tremendous tackle as he was about to shoot. Fernandez tried a late shot, screwed well wide as time looked like running out for the Blues and this time Garnacho drew a foul from Godfrey for a late penalty to the hosts that Rashford rolled in easily to end the game. 

Everton had played better than in recent games, but still often too slow and tentative going forward, while making crucial mistakes that gave away match-winning goals.

Manchester Utd: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Shaw, Malacia (76' Martinez); Casemiro (71' Fred), Eriksen (83' Maguire); Antony (84' McTominay), Fernandes [Y:28'], Rashford; Martial (71' Garnacho).

Subs: Heaton, Lindelof, Wan-Bissaka, Elanga.

Everton: Pickford, Coleman (81'  Gordon), Mykolenko (81' McNeil), Godfrey [Y:60'], Coady, Tarkowski, Onana [Y:88'], Gana, Iwobi (50' Doucoure [Y:67']), Gray, Maupay (69' Calvert-Lewin).

Subs not Used: Begovic, Holgate, Mina, Davies, Simms. 

Michael Kenrick

Match Preview

A bruised and vulnerable Everton travel to Old Trafford this evening to take on the relative might of Manchester United in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup.

The Blues come into the tie reeling from a heavy home defeat by Brighton on Tuesday night that was underpinned by a shockingly inept performance that has placed manager Frank Lampard’s future at the club under grave threat.

The former Derby and Chelsea boss, who has overseen just three wins in the Premier League, saw a completely changed team go down heavily at Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup in November and his abysmal record of results has left the club sitting in the bottom three of the division.

Tonight’s Cup tie could offer immediate respite and provide the manager breathing room ahead of another vital home fixture against fellow strugglers, Southampton, or it could hasten his departure from Goodison and throw Everton into fresh turmoil.

Indeed, some newspaper reports have suggested that the tie against United will carry a significant amount of weight with the club’s hierarchy while others claim that it’s the upcoming games against Saints and West Ham that will be pivotal.

Lampard might have planned to make changes to his side for this one regardless but he will be forced into at least one after Nathan Patterson was ruled out for six weeks with a knee injury.

He will almost certainly be replaced by Seamus Coleman in what could revert to a back five featuring Ben Godfrey, while Amadou Onana is likely to return after serving a one-game ban against the Seagulls.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin is a doubt after coming away from the Brighton defeat feeling “fatigued” having played the majority of that game and the draw at Manchester City four days earlier, while Anthony Gordon is still doubtful has he nears his recovery from illness.

Depending on how much Lampard feels he needs to get a result from this one, he might not even hand Asmir Begovic a “cup keeper” role, preferring to keep first-choice stopper, Jordan Pickford, in the line-up.

It’s 28 years since the Blues last won a major trophy and, on the current form of the respective sides, there is little to suggest that Everton’s participation will go beyond the first hurdle of the FA Cup this season.

United have won nine of their last 10 games in all competitions and are back in contention among the top four of the Premier League, with Erik ten Haag’s feet now firmly under the table at Old Trafford.

But in a one-off cup tie and the magic of this particular competition, anything is possible. Lampard insisted in his press conference that he is up for the fight and has seen improvements in his team that might not be superficially obvious to outsiders or yet translating into results.

He will need his players to step up in a big way in the next couple of weeks, starting in United’s self-styled “Theatre of Dreams”.

Kick-off: 8pm, Friday 6 January 2023
Last Time: Everton 1 - 2 Man United (FAC SF, Apr 2016)

Predicted Line-up: Pickford, Coleman, Coady, Godfrey, Tarkowski, Mykolenko, Gueye, Onana, Iwobi, Gray, Maupay

Lyndon Lloyd

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