Carlos Alcaraz registered his first goal for Everton and claimed an assist as the Toffees ended a memorable week with a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
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Having earned a point against Liverpool via James Tarkowski's 98th-minute stunner on Wednesday, Everton arrived in south London in buoyant mood.
Beto put them ahead against the run of play late in the first half after Palace had missed several good opportunities and seen a Jefferson Lerma header disallowed.
Jean-Philippe Mateta levelled with his 11th Premier League goal of the season early in the second half, but Flamengo loanee Alcaraz struck the winner with 10 minutes to play.
David Moyes' team climb one place in the table to 13th, with 30 points, 13 clear of the bottom three. They are level with 12th-placed Palace, whose goal difference is just one better.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 |
Brentford
BRE
|
25 | +1 | 34 |
| 12 |
Spurs
TOT
|
25 | +12 | 30 |
| 13 |
Crystal Palace
CRY
|
25 | -3 | 30 |
| 14 |
Everton
EVE
|
25 | -4 | 30 |
| 15 |
Man Utd
MUN
|
25 | -7 | 29 |
How the match unfolded
The first chance fell to Palace as Mateta bundled his way through a couple of challenges in the sixth minute, only to shoot straight at Jordan Pickford.
Marc Guehi drew a reflex save from Pickford in the 19th minute, but the Everton goalkeeper was rooted when Lerma headed into the top-right corner moments later.
However, the assistant referee had signalled that Justin Devenny's corner had curled out of play first and, with no conclusive evidence to overturn that decision, the VAR confirmed Anthony Taylor's on-field call.
Ismaila Sarr then rattled the crossbar from close range after a strong run from Chris Richards, and Everton swiftly punished that miss. Tyrick Mitchell's loose throw-in went straight to Alcaraz, who teed up Beto for an easy finish.
Palace levelled just two minutes into the second half, with Guehi hooking a loose ball into the path of Mateta, who finished coolly. There was a nervous wait as his strike was checked for a possible offside, but the VAR confirmed the on-field decision to award the goal.
Jesper Lindstrom worked Dean Henderson as the game became stretched, and it was Everton who provided the final twist, Alcaraz stroking home after Will Hughes had blocked Ashley Young's drive.
Palace made to rue misses
Palace entered Saturday's game in fine form, having won four of their last six Premier League matches after starting the season with just three victories in 18 outings.
The Eagles had scored two goals in each of those recent victories, but their clinical edge deserted them in the first half of this match, Mateta and Sarr both squandering clear-cut opportunities.
Within 61 seconds of that latter miss, Palace were caught short at the back. Mitchell's throw-in was well behind Lerma, and the alert Alcaraz had plenty of time to release Beto.
Oliver Glasner's half-time introductions of fit-again duo Adam Wharton and Eberechi Eze gave Palace more control, and the Eagles might feel a point was the least they deserved from this game. However, they failed to build on the momentum generated by Mateta's equaliser, and their defending for Alcaraz's winner was suspect.
Jake O'Brien got around the back far too easily to keep a deep cross alive, and when Hughes blocked a cross-shot from Young, Alcaraz had the freedom of the penalty area to slot home.
Glasner will view this result as a missed opportunity, with Palace having been on the front foot against tiring opponents at 1-1. Things do not get any easier, with a tough trip to Fulham next Saturday.
More positives for Moyes
After Wednesday's dramatic derby draw with Liverpool, Moyes was asked if it was his job to keep Everton's players and supporters grounded.
"Isn't it nice to have some positive talk around Everton for a change?" was the Scot's blunt response, signalling his intention to maintain the feel-good factor produced by Tarkowski's midweek heroics.
Everton relied on a mixture of good fortune and strong goalkeeping from Pickford before ruthlessly punishing Palace's first mistake to open the scoring. Making his first start after arriving on loan from Flamengo, Alcaraz pounced on Mitchell's careless throw before releasing Beto to slot home.
Beto now has four goals in his last three league appearances, having only scored once in his previous 20. Moyes deserves plenty of credit for his renaissance, with the forward playing with a newfound confidence.
When Palace levelled, Everton – four days on from a workmanlike performance against the league leaders – could have settled for a point. Instead, they continued to throw men forward and got their reward when Alcaraz sidefooted home in the 80th minute.
That made the former Southampton man just the seventh player to score and assist on his first Premier League start for Everton, who appear rejuvenated one month into Moyes' second spell. The Scot's former club, Manchester United, are up next in a week.
Club reports
Palace report | Everton report
What the managers said
Oliver Glasner: "It is frustrating today and similar to the defeat against Brentford. The game was exactly how we expected it and then of course when we concede such goals, it is hard. We had two or three chances and the first half was quite equal.
"We gave them this kind of goal, had a great reaction and then it was up and down. It was a set play again when we couldn't clear it and that is why we lost. The players tried everything and we had a big effort. It is not so easy to score against them. We had some opportunities but we didn't have the efficiency today."
David Moyes: "The players have reacted well. It has been a dream start coming in and winning so many games. Starting to look more healthy in the Premier League. I hope it will be the case, ultimately I think we still have to get enough points.
"It has been a brilliant start, it was a good win for us today, really scrappy. They showed great resilience and won at a difficult place against a team who have been improving."
Next PL fixtures
Key facts
Only Wilfried Zaha (68) has scored more Premier League goals for Crystal Palace than Jean-Philippe Mateta (35, level with Christian Benteke).
Everton have completed a league double over Crystal Palace for the first time since the 2004-05 season, also under manager David Moyes.
Since David Moyes’ first match in charge since returning to the club, Everton have picked up 13 points (W4 D1 L1), with no team in the Premier League picking up more.