by Everton suffered their heaviest Premier League defeat against Chelsea and their worst defeat at Stamford Bridge since a 6-0 drubbing in 1948 and the national media were understandably horrified by the visitors’ display as they were torn apart. .
In the MirrorMike Walters even went so far as to suggest that Everton’s “no flip” display was enough to earn them another points deduction.
He wrote: “On this evidence, you have to fear John Dyche’s team when the music stops and the Premier League stops getting points. They deserved to be booed off. They were a disgrace.
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“With eight points already undivided from two sittings by Premier League accountants, Everton have formally appealed against the latest two-point penalty. It’s absurd, with barely a month of the season left, that the relegation battle is subject to more stars than Gordon Ramsay’s kitchen nightmare.
“But the main reason why Everton are fighting for their lives for the third season in a row is because they are not very good. One league win in four months tells its own terrible story, and the Toffees’ run in is a terrible one. This could really be the season they go down after tap-dancing the trapdoor one too many times.
“From the moment Palmer first dived into his top hat after 13 minutes, they weren’t hiding. Palmer nutmegged Jarrad Branthwaite, exchanged passes with Nicolas Jackson and swept a delightful, curling effort beyond Jordan Pickford.
“Within five minutes, Everton’s night was already over as Pickford headed home Jackson’s close-range effort and Palmer curled the second from a few yards. And when England keeper Pickford brainstormed – a careless, sloppy clearance with no pressure – to hand Palmer his hat-trick chance, he obliged with a pitching-wedge, right-footed finish from nearly 40 yards.
“The game is over, and Everton knew it.”
In the Daily Telegraph, Matt Law said, on the day Everton confirmed they had submitted their second-point relegation appeal of the campaign, they may even have to rely on off-field gambling to preserve their Premier League status. He said: “With little space between themselves and the relegation zone, Everton must hope that their appeal against their second points deduction of the season will be successful. On this evidence, they cannot be relied upon to pull themselves out of trouble on the field.
“With over 70 minutes of the game remaining, Palmer looked set to complete his hat-trick and did so shortly before the 30-minute mark – thanks in part to a terrible mistake from Pickford. Palmer certainly doesn’t need any favors to get on the scoreboard right now, but he got one when Pickford ran the ball into his path as he tried to find Amadou Onana.
“Pickford immediately went back towards his own goal, but Palmer lobbed a beautiful right-footed shot from around 35 yards over the goalkeeper and into the net. It was an incredible way to complete a hat-trick and left Everton and manager Sean Dyche absolutely stunned after the visitors got off to a good start.”
Jacob Steinburg the Guardian it led to the disturbing impression that it was Cole Palmer’s Chelsea side rather than anyone from the Everton side who were most determined to thwart him. He said: “On a night when Jordan Pickford’s distribution deteriorated and Jarrad Branthwaite added to Sean Dyche’s injury gloom, nothing summed up the extent of Everton’s collapse more than the players who tried their hardest to stop add to the scoring Cole Palmer throws. blue
“It’s the nature of life at Stamford Bridge for Mauricio Pochettino, whose side are three points off sixth place after their most impressive Premier League win of the season. Some teams cruise through 6-0 thrashings, but not Chelsea. Sometimes they are brilliant, always enigmatic and yet, despite fleeting signs of progress, prone to moments of inexplicable immaturity.
“The chaos doesn’t faze Palmer, of course. He destroyed Everton with his second hat-trick in successive home games, taking his tally to 20 goals and nine assists since his move from Manchester City last summer, and didn’t even flinch when the pair did petulant Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke try to take. penalty in the second half from him.
“This was one to forget for Pickford, who had already given Palmer his hat-trick goal with a through pass. Everton were embarrassed, as James Tarkowski later admitted. Instead of showing the fight that might be expected from a team sitting two points above the bottom three, they embarrassed themselves after falling behind and, by the nature of their defense and a pedestrian attack, they cannot base their hope of survival on winning their appeal. against their latest points deduction for breaching profitability and sustainability regulations.
“True, Everton feel a sense of injustice. Chelsea’s pre-match press releases focused on a growing injury list and the revelations in their year-end accounts that a £90.1m loss was offset by the sale of two hotels from one club-affiliated entity to another. Others can only marvel at financial creativity. But Everton have made mistakes in the boardroom and are a mess off the pitch.”
Meanwhile, in the ECHO, Joe Thomas insisted Everton’s players could have no complaints about their away camp at Stamford Bridge. He said: “Everton deserved every boo after the worst half of Sean Dyche’s reign.
“They wouldn’t be able to complain if they had received the same treatment full time. The only reason they weren’t is because the away end was all but empty.
“And who could blame the thousands who spent hundreds in the cost of living crisis in the mistaken belief that they would be rewarded with fight and desire, if not quality? Their staff gave them no reason to stay.
“Over the last two years those supporters have fixed a club. It was against Chelsea that they had great success for the first welcome to the Goodison coach who started the run to safety under Frank Lampard.
“If they are to do the same for the third campaign they need to be given some inspiration. Instead, the only applause from the traveling supporters on Monday night was from a handful of fans who acknowledged Cole Palmer as he left the field after scoring four goals. He could have six. His whole team was successful in the end.”
