Everton vs Brighton and Hove Albion. Premier League.
Goodison ParkAttendance38,772.
Report and free highlights as Carlo Ancelotti makes it two home wins from two attempts in the Premier League
Saturday 11 January 2020 19:22, UK
Richarlison scored a stunning solo goal as Everton returned to winning ways by beating Brighton 1-0 at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The Toffees dominated the match but withstood a nervous finish with Seagulls striker Glenn Murray nearly equalising twice within the final 10 minutes, forcing an excellent save out of goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin saw a goal ruled out by VAR while Leandro Trossard hit the bar as both sides spurned good chances, but it was Carlo Ancelotti's men who left Goodison with three points to recover from recent defeats to Manchester City and Liverpool in the Premier League and FA Cup.
Everton and Brighton remain 11th and 14th respectively, with the Toffees just six points behind fifth-placed Manchester United and the Seagulls four points off the drop zone in a tight Premier League table.
Both sides had their first chances within the first five minutes. Brighton failed to convert a delightful Trossard free-kick from distance before Theo Walcott burst down the other end and forced a save from Matt Ryan.
Walcott appeared to be tugged down by Lewis Dunk inside the box in the process, but after a lengthy VAR review, no penalty was given. Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas told Soccer Saturday that the incident was a "stonewall penalty" - but that did not deter Everton - who continued to create chances, with Bernard the main architect for the hosts.
It was his Brazilian compatriot Richarlison who forced the next save out of Ryan, who is donating 500 Australian dollars for every save made by a Premier League goalkeeper this weekend towards the Australian bushfires.
Just minutes later Richarlison opened the scoring (38) when Bernard found Lucas Digne inside the box, who fired a low cross to the 22-year-old before he beat two defenders and hit a sweet, curling shot beyond Ryan.
Michael Keane could have doubled Everton's advantage just before the break but he was denied by a crucial interception by Brighton defender Shane Duffy from Gylfi Sigurdsson's long free-kick.
Both sides wasted early second-half chances, with Trossard seeing a shot cannon off the bar before Lewis Dunk produced a brilliant block to stop Richarlison's shot from six yards.
Just after the hour mark, Brighton goalkeeper Ryan conjured up two excellent saves, firstly stopping Calvert-Lewin from point-blank range before denying him once again at full stretch after the striker went one-on-one.
There was then more VAR drama when Calvert-Lewin knocked Digne's cross over the line, with the ball appearing to strike his shoulder, but it was deemed to have hit his arm as the score remained 1-0 heading into the last 10 minutes.
The decision to rule out Everton's second goal inspired Brighton, with Murray twice going painfully close to levelling things up, firstly forcing an outstanding save out of Pickford with a powerful header inside the box.
With just a minute to go, Murray found himself one-on-one but his chipped shot flew just wide of the post as Everton held on to secure the win.
Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti: "It was difficult at the end. We had an opportunity to score a second goal and make it quieter towards the end, but of course when it is only 1-0 there are difficulties.
"For 60 minutes the performance was good, we played well, and I am happy about that.
"Today we showed a reaction for our supporters. We have to keep going. It is important to keep a clean sheet and to win. We stayed in control for most of the time during the game today."
Brighton boss Graham Potter: "We could have had something. We had a couple of opportunities with Glenn Murray at the end, hit the bar (though Leandro Trossard) and got into the final third quite often.
"Our disappointment is we probably didn't do enough in that final third to create as many chances as we'd like to and put them under pressure.
"We gave the ball away when we had opportunities to keep it and that means you get driven back a little bit. We lacked quality in the final third - and they were attacking our goal too easily."
Richarlison grabbed the only goal of the match, securing victory for the Toffees, and the timing was just as important after the Everton crowd had started to become a little frustrated.
It was an impressive strike too, after going past two defenders, with the 22-year-old now directly involved in 11 Premier League goals this season - eight goals and three assists - more than any other player at the club.
Since his Premier League debut for Everton in August 2018, Richarlison has scored 21 goals in the competition, seven more than any other player. He's a game-changer and is exactly what Ancelotti needed today.
Premier League action continues as Everton face former manager David Moyes when they travel to West Ham on Saturday, January 18 in a 3pm kick-off, while Brighton host Aston Villa on the same day at the same time.
