Everton 0-2 Nottingham Forest: Final | Wood and Gibbs-White the difference

12/29/2024 11:57 AM

The Blues hosted high-flying Forest in a physical battle at Goodison Park

Live Blog

Fulltime Thoughts - Not much between the two sides today, except a couple of moments of quality that saw the Forest attackers score while Everton's forwards continue to graft and toil with no end product.

90+5' - Calvert-Lewin offside. Huh, never seen that one before.
There's the final whistle, and it's met a with round of boos as Everton close out 2024 at Goodison Park with a defeat, ending the six-game unbeaten streak at home. The 2-0 win for Forest meanwhile sees them go up to second in the table. It was just May when Everton finished above Forest who were in 17th.

90+3' - Everton still relying on Route 1 football here to try and get a goal, and let's just be clear, it won't be coming today.

90' - Branthwaite wins a freekick by the sideline on the left. Ndiaye to take, Forest clear and Elanga is through on goal, Pickford makes the save! Then he saves from Awoniyi as well! This could have been much, much worse for the Blues today.
5 minutes to be added on here.

88' - Ooooh Beto! Deep cross from the left headed goalwards from Beto and Sels had to make a big save to keep him out.

83' - Patto finds Lindstrom, turns and crosses and DCL gets just a faint flick on it, but it flies wide. Needed more contact there.

81' - Everton finally have a shot on target. Myko deep cross, DCL tame header straight to Sels.

80' - Lindstrom and Ndiaye have switched wings, ball into the box again but it just does not fall for a blue shirt.
Bouncing ball, Ndiaye snapshot from the edge of the box goes wide.

78' - Lindstrom inswinger, Sels and Branthwaite clash and the goalie wins that one.

76' - Freekick for the Blues in their own half, Pickford's long ball is to no one and bounces clean through to Sels. What was the plan there, we all want to know?
Now Ndiaye fouled by Aina, ref plays advantage, and then finally blows for a foul as the Everton player is bundled over.
Freekick on the left, Lindstrom to take, off the wall, corner.

74' - Shorter cross from Patto this time, Mangala nips ahead and his side-footed shot goes into the side-netting.
Broja comes off now, with Beto on. Gibbs-White also leaves the game as does Wood.

71' - Patto immediately wins a corner on the right. Lindstrom to take, low and poor. Comes back to him and his attempt with his left foot is better, comes off the back of DCL and then cleared.
Excellent cross from Patto, just over Broja, just short of DCL. Everton still trying.

68' - Interesting double change now, looks like Dyche is going to make a run for it after all. Calvert-Lewin is on for Gueye with Patterson replacing Young. Expect Doucoure to fall into the midfield and Broja to play off DCL.
Nuno Gomes has gone to his Wolves favorite Willy Boly taking off Sosa, three defenders to counter Everton's two strikers. Boly straight into the book for time-wasting.

64' - Oh boy. Pickford spills a shot, reacts quickly to the rebound shot, and then a does very well to save a third shot.
Corner is cleared for another one. MGW takes it again, and it's out for another corner. Pickford hoods the ball away and has been booked. Third one is cleared.

61' - Shambles from Everton and it's in the back of the net, 2-0 to Forest. Gibbs-White looks to have fouled Mangala with a hand in the midfielder's face, but ref says play on. That turns into a counter that Doucoure then fluffs his defensive lines on, with the ball coming back to Elanga then Wood who finds Gibbs-White to place it past Pickford, with Everton stretched and not a defender to be found near the ball. Game over looks like.

58' - Good work from Ndiaye winning the ball back after losing it, finds Doucoure who gives it to Lindstrom, the winger cuts in and shoots, ball doesn't curve back and goes wide.
Calvert-Lewin is warming up now, but will Dyche stick with the one striker, or take off Doucoure instead?

Hmm, that flag looks familiar!

53' - Lindstrom slips and Forest have a 4-on-3, Gibbs-White tries to curl in a shot that goes horribly wrong, Blues survive again.
Now Branthwaite is booked for a solid challenge on Gibbs-White - sometimes those are given as fouls, sometimes they're good, what do you say.

51' - Everton pressing high and Tarky steals the ball near the box, ball bobbles to Doucoure who tries to turn and shoot, blocked.
Good hustle from the Blues, need a moment or three of magic to get a goal though,

47' - Elanga deceives Myko and is running free in space, goes down easily as Gana pressures him and the Everton midfielder is booked. Freekick about 25 yards out, Gibbs-White over it, chipped short for Elanga and Myko clears. Ball bounces back into the box and Milenkovic wants a penalty as Branthwaite was holding his shirt, ref listens to VAR and deems no issue here. Not much different than the penalty the Blues wanted when the same pair clashed in the other box.

46' - Everton have made the one change at the break, with the woeful Jack Harrison off and Jesper Lindstrom on for him.
Good move for the Blues with a right-footed cross from Myko going just over Lindstrom.

Halftime Thoughts - Everton haven't done enough in the attacking half to warrant anything out of this game, and got caught out on the counter for Forest to nab the opener. There will only be more of this in the second half as Forest double down on defending and hitting the Blues on the counter.

45+2' - Broja is down holding his back as play goes on, and eventually the halftime whistle goes so he can get some attention. Everton go into the break down 1-0 to Forest.

45+1' - Whew, quick chance for Forest through the middle but Sosa pokes his shot just wide.

45' - Tarky with a very good sliding tackle on Wood, it had to be with him on a yellow. The striker goes down anyway and wants a foul. Ref gives a drop-ball that Wood won't let Pickford hoof away and Goodison boos loudly.
Two minutes to be added on here.

44' - Williams wins a cheap freekick off Broja and the striker is pretty distraught. Goodison agrees with the on-loan striker.
Oooh, Broja creates a chance and then hammers it goalwards with his left foot from outside the box, flies wide of the far post.

41' - Argh. Quick counter for the Blues from a throw-in on the right, comes to Myko as Forest are stretched at the back, and the cross from the Ukraine international is overhit and it goes wide.

37' - Direct football almost works for the Blues. Myko in space, quick cross and Morato does well to get between two blue shirts to head clear.
Now Branthwaite charges into the box with the ball at his feet, and his opponent has a handful of his shirt and barges him over, but the referee is not interested in the penalty shouts that ring out around Goodison as the Everton defender goes down.

32' - Oooh! Broja starts a move in the left channel, finds Myko whose cross is headed goalwards by Broja, skids wide though.

30' - Another wasted chance. Everton freekick from midfield into the box, ball recycled by Mangala crossfield to Harrison, who tries to beat two men and promptly loses the ball and fouls an opponent.

27' - Good cross now from Myko, but Broja can only flick it on and wide of the target. No one is really attacking the penalty spot and the six yard box right now.

24' - Aimless cross from Ndiaye goes over Broja and out. Not quite working out for the Blues, need to keep the ball.
Long aerial from Tarky finds Broja in the box, he shows exquisite control to bring it down but the ball skids away from him.

21' - Aina error wins the Blues a second corner. Inswinger from Young, Branthwaite gets his shoulder on it, over and out.

19' - Broja wins a corner off Anderson, first opportunity for the Blues on the setpieces. Ndiaye to take from the right, played short to Harrison and his backheel to Ndiaye is blocked and the chance is wasted. Ugh.

15' - Ndiaye attacking with speed but can't beat his man one-on-one. Forest counter now, and just like that, they are ahead.
Chris Wood gets the opener with an excellent cushioned volley. Wood beats Tarky to a long ball, Elanga finds him back in space and with the centrehalves in disarray, the striker scores yet again this season, 1-0 Forest.

12' - Tarky shields the ball well in the middle third and somehow gets to the box with the ball on his feet, plays it through to Broja but his flick doesn't quite work out.
Now Elanga has a yard or two on Mykolenko and swings in a cross, Wood is unmarked but can't put the goal on target. Blues can't keep giving away opportunities like that.

11' - Forest counter with speed off a Harrison giveaway, the Blues defend well and ball comes to Wood who tries a volley from distance that is well wide.

8' - Oh come on ref. Tarky overhits the ball and follows up with a heavy but fair tackle, and somehow referee Tony Richardson deems that not only a foul but worthy of a booking too!

7' - Broja's first participation should have won the Blues a corner, but the assistant referee indicates goalkick and he is roundly booed.

5' - Branthwaite makes a poor clearance and then Pickford comes out a long way to collect a ball that Tarkowksi hacks away, poorly. Miscommunication early on here.
Brilliant run from Ndiaye there! Turns between two Forest players and then gets into a shooting position at the edge of the box and fires wildly over, oof.

2'- Early freekick for the Blues as Harrison is brought down. Forest can somewhat clear before Elanga tries to race free but loses the ball.

1' - Gana gets us underway.
There was one change to the Forest starting lineup with Ramón Sosa replacing Murillo who tweaked something during the warmups/

For the last time in 2024 Everton come out to the air raid siren followed by the dulcet notes of Z-Cars. The Blues' first ever league game was against Nottingham Forest back on 3rd September 1892, ending in a 2-2 score.

We have a minute's applause here to remember all the Evertonians who passed away this year.

Starting Lineups

Everton: Dyche finally pulls the plug on the Calvert-Lewin adventure and hands Broja his first start, though inexplicably Harrison keeps his spot.

Nottingham Forest: No changes for the visitors.

Preview

Everton's season is continuing on a strange trajectory where they can't score and can't win games, but have tightened up the defence so they're not getting beaten either. Draws against Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City are to be celebrated in any given year, but with the Toffees struggling to beat teams around them they are still sitting right above the relegation zone.

Visitors Nottingham Forest on the other hand are having a rare Midas-esque season where everything they're touching has turned to gold. Forest sit in fourth place currently and with Manchester City, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United all floundering they've taken full advantage of the situation.

Match Details

Competition: Premier League Matchweek 19

Date and start time: Sunday, December 29th at 7:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m ET / 3:00 p.m. BST

Stadium: Goodison Park, Liverpool, England, United Kingdom

Capacity: 39,572

Weather: 45°F/7°C, partly cloudy, 5% chance of precipitation, 9 mph winds

How to Watch/Listen

TV: USA Network - United States; N/A - United Kingdom; Fubo- Canada, beIN Sports HD 3, SuperSport OTT 6

Radio: evertontv, BBC Radio 5 Live

Live stream: Fubo, NBC Sports App, nbcsports.com, ESPN Play Sur, beIN SPORTS CONNECT, DStv Now, RUSH, Disney+ Hotstar, JioTV

Gamethread: There will be a live blog for this game, with our coverage continuing after the final whistle with the match recap and reaction.

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Information from LiveSoccerTV.com

Last Meeting

Forest and Everton were neck and neck for large parts of last season as both clubs saw the Premier League deduct points for Profit and Sustainability Regulations violations, but both survived the drop comfortably in the end.

The Blues had the edge over Forest last season doing the double, a 1-0 win thanks to Dwight McNeil at the City Ground followed by a 2-0 victory with Idrissa Gueye and McNeil again bagging the goals in the late April fixture at Goodison.