Everton are out of the Europa League after falling apart late on against Lyon and having Morgan Schneiderlin sent off, having also seen Cuca Martina carried off in the first half
And that’s that. Everton are out of the Europa League. Three-nil was a harsh scoreline, the first goal coming against the run of play, but they fell apart after falling behind. Lyon showed only flashes of their best but they looked a more accomplished side than Everton, who for all their focus and determination this evening, continue to look a limited side. And a luckless one too, as Cuca Martina’s worrying injury demonstrated.
90+1 mins: Mariano, who’s impressed since coming on, wriggles himself into a shooting position 20 yards out but his deflected shot is well held lowdown by Pickford.
90 mins: Apollon and Atalanta have drawn 1-1, a result that is unable to reprieve Everton, whose European campaign will have three more meandering minutes
Salt is poured into gaping wounds with a goal of impressive simplicity, a lovely curling ball in by Ferri from the right that is met by Depay at the near post who arrows a header low into the corner.
Lyon’s Memphis Depay celebrates after scoring whilst a frustrated Jordan Pickford hoikes the ball away. Photograph: Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty Images
87 mins: So what does this game tell us about Unsworth’s chances of getting the Everton gig full time? Not much I’d say – but they still look like a bunch of lower mid-table toilers rather than a team on which huge wads were blown over the summer. In the meantime, a lovely interchange between Mariano and Depay is snuffed out by Everton bodies in the box. Lyon have been better since Fekir went off tonight.
84 mins: Shneiderlin’s red card gave Robbie Savage in the commentary box the chance to pull out his “boast” about receiving 79 yellow cards but only one red in his career, because basically he carefully managed to do only one stupid and/or violent thing in a match. Whereas Schneiderlin on this occasion did not. Watch and learn, kids.
78 mins: For all that Everton have defended well in deep midfield areas tonight, they were all at sea there, with the centre-halves adrift of each other as Mariano, Depay and then Aouar picked them off. They win a free-kick though, which Sigurdsson curls narrowly wide with Williams not far off making a decisive touch.
A long ball finds Mariano who nudges it on for Depay, who then feeds Aouar, just inside the area, who strokes it with precision into the corner. That’s Everton’s European campaign over surely.
Houssem Aouar strikes a pose as he celebrates scoring their second goal in front of some rather happy Lyon fans, Photograph: Robert Pratta/Reuters
74 mins: So with Atalanta still winning, Everton are heading out as things stand, and all this after their most tenacious performance of their campaign. It’s not over yet though. The masked Calvert-Lewin wins a free-kick on the left, from which Holgate volleys against the bar after a header back from Kenny. But Kenny is ruled to have been out of play when nodding it back.
71 mins: When your luck’s out it’s out. Everton’s most dominant period of the game ends in them conceding. Lyon get forward again now and win another couple of corners, the first of which is headed behind by Calvert-Lewin, the second offering up a chance to Cornet after a bout of head-tennis and his fierce shot flies fractionally wide of the right-hand post.
But wouldn’t you know? A long ball forward appears to have been won by Schneiderlin but it deflects away from him into the path of Traore in space, who bears down on goal, takes it wide of the keeper and slots it low into the net.
Lyon’s Bertrand Traore celebrates after opening the scoring. Photograph: Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty Images
Whilst the Everton players look dejected after going behind. Photograph: James Marsh/BPI/Rex/Shutterstock
67 mins: Lookman, Everton’s best attacking outlet all evening, embarks on another decent ruin through the middle setting up Lennon for a cross in that’s initially cleared. But Schneiderlin wins it back, enabling Calvert-Lewin to set up Sigurdsson for a shot from 20 yards that is thumped wide.
65 mins: Lyon win a corner after Diakhaby powers forward and feeds Mendy, whose cross is adjudged to have been deflected behind. But Depay’s corner is straight down Pickford’s throat.
64 mins: Depay hooks a low cross into the box from the right by-line but Williams clears. And Lyon just can’t maintain the spells of patient possession they managed in the first half.
60 mins: Everton chance again! Lookman forages down the right, beats his man, Mendy, at the byline and sends a teasing low ball into the near post where Sigurdsson can’t quite get clear of his man to make a clean connection. Or indeed, any connection, as replays indicate.
58 mins: Everton booking – Schneiderlin. The fallout from that Lyon penalty shout was general verbals from a number of players, prime among them Schneiderlin, who goes into the book.
57 mins: Fakir is sent clear by a probing long pass, twists and turns at Holgate, who looks as if he’s brought down the Lyon playmaker inside the area but replays suggest he won the ball. The free-kick is given Everton’s way, to howls from the home crowd.
54 mins:Everton win a free-kick on the left after Baningime is fouled. Sigurdsson’s ball in causes a bit of bother but there’s been a foul by Holgate and the whistle goes. Williams fires it into the net regardless, gets booed, and a talking-to by the referee.
52 mins: Lyon’s first chance of the half arrives when Besic gives the ball away to Traore, who lays it off to Cornet on his right but his low angled effort is too close to Pickford.
51 mins: Bangingime closes down Fekir again midway inside the Everton half, frustrating the home side, who’ve not hit their straps since the restart yet.
47 mins:Everton have begun this half in sprightly fashion, and are pressing well, pushing Mendy to do some defensive work out wide deep into his own half, but Lyon earn a breather when they win a free-kick.
46 mins:Everton chance! Kenny feeds Baningime who gets forward and finds Lennon whose ball in drops to Gueye in space inside the box but he belts it straight at the keeper. He should have done better. That was the clearest chance we’ve had, and by miles the closest Everton have come.
Idrissa Gueye of Everton with a chance on goal but he can’t direct it far enough away from Anthony Lopes who’s between the sticks for Lyon. Photograph: Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images
Everton will be happy enough with that. They’ve kept their shape and their defensive focus against a side who clearly have the capacity to outpass them but haven’t found the necessary incision yet.
In the meantime, here’s an email back at Ian Copestake from Robin Hazlehurst: “To answer Mr Copestake, didn’t Wolves get done for dossing about on the back row in maths when they fielded a team of butlers to usher Man Utd goalwards a while back or summat? D for effort was deemed not acceptable then.”
Everton’s effort has been pretty good so far, their main point of concern at the moment being Martina after that nasty-looking injury. Anyway, back in a bit for the second half.
45+6 mins: Ouch. A nasty clash between team-mates as Pickford dashes out and collides with Williams, the keeper falling awkwardly but getting up Ok. The home crowd raise their jeers of the Welsh defender once again. Both sets of fans creating decent noise here.
45+5 mins:Lyon are making plenty of headway out wide but in the middle Fekir and Traore haven’t been the threat we might have anticipated. Which in part is testament to Everton’s resilience so far.
45+3 mins:Everton are defending well in a last-line rearguard kind of way but the ball keeps coming back at them from their more accomplished opponents. Lyon’s latest lengthy spell of possession, though, breaks down against Kenny’s resolute tackling at left-back.
