In that split second, as Dwight McNeil surrounded Jason Steele and celebrated before throwing the ball into the net, the troubles of a club in turmoil were forgotten.
Everton was so shaken with happiness you wondered if it would ever return, but in the 76th minute it had: 3,000 fans, who had traveled 500 miles, bounced frantically on the South Stand; a coaching staff under pressure to perform roared as their tension was released.
Few had given Everton any chance of success at Brighton and many expected this to be a day when they were pushed ever closer to the brink, but in adversity a group of players with questions to answer conjured up the club’s best away performance in a decade emerge.
Numerically, this was their most emphatic challenge since they mocked a Burnley side, managed by Sean Dyche, 5-1 on Boxing Day 2018, but the numbers didn’t do it justice. Brighton, who has become everyone’s second club, was razed to the ground and Everton rose from the dead.
McNeil was a symbol of everything, a marauding runner with a left foot like a magic wand, but everywhere you looked you saw excellent quality: Dominic Calvert-Lewin looked like an English striker, Yerry Mina was a giant, Abdoulaye Doucoure a totem. Why did it take them so long?
Abdoulaye Doucoure (left) and Dwight McNeil (right) both scored a brace as Everton beat Brighton & Hove Albion 5-1
McNeil showed impressive composure in front of goal and his second shot was of a very high standard
Sean Dyche’s Everton side have emerged from the Premier League’s relegation zone with this impressive 5-1 win
With three games to go in this torturous relegation battle, plenty of time for Everton to screw things up, but it seems inconceivable how, with this spirit, desire and quality, they will slip into the Championship.
To think that Brighton had started the day cementing their hopes of qualifying for Europe. If you had entered this stadium towards the end without knowing there was a table you would have thought it was the team in salmon pink with grand designs on the top six: that’s how well Everton played.
Football’s ability to balance itself never ceases to fail. Brighton had scored their last ever Premier League goal (99 minutes) last Thursday, but the yin to that yang was getting their earliest ever Premier League goal here (35 seconds).
Some fans hadn’t even reached their seats when Nathan Patterson took possession, bumped a pass to Alex Iwobi and put Calvert-Lewin on the run. With time and space to choose a cross, the England international Doucoure settled and he did the rest.
What a start. Fulham’s spearing of Leicester had lifted the mood of traveling supporters, but this was what really mattered. All they ever want is to see their team give them something to believe in and how they grab it, singing and roaring relentlessly.
You’d be tempted to wonder why it’s taken this group so long to show this level of prowess, but that question can be answered another day: this was all about a game plan that was ruthlessly executed and a team that made itself hoisted above that dreaded dotted line.
Brighton looked jaded, but they played an inexplicably high line, resembling a boxer trying to goad an opponent by leaving his chin open. It was madness and eventually Everton counter-attacked and tied them twice to get them on the ropes.
It was Doucoure who would double Everton’s lead. He won a tackle on the edge of his own penalty area, jabbing possession to Gana Gueye who in turn sent McNeill running to the left. His cross was beautiful and the Malian, galloping 70 yards, struck in a volley finish.
Brighton defender Lewis Dunk shows his frustration as his side’s hopes of securing European football were dented
Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele left dejected after scoring an own goal during his side’s defeat to Everton
Alexis Mac Allister scored for Brighton but it proved to be just a consolation as his side were well beaten by Everton
The Zerbi was incredulous and harassed his coaches about the amount of space and non-existent challenges, but this was all about Everton looking like they were capable of scoring every time they entered wide open spaces.
That’s exactly what happened the next time they broke. Again it came from deep, Iwobi playing a one-two with Calvert-Lewin before sending Doucoure out. The pass went a little too far wide, but he retrieved it and passed it to McNeil, whose cross went in through goalkeeper Jason Steele.
Few could believe what they saw. Everton hadn’t scored three times off Goodison since February 6, 2021, but they played like mad and a fourth should have arrived on the stroke of half time, only for young James Garner to show his lines, allowing Steele to save.
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, who made some excellent saves, celebrates after his side’s victory was confirmed
Four substitutions at half time showed how furious De Zerbi was at what he had seen. To their credit, Brighton – especially Solly March – kept asking questions after the break and it took some super saves from Jordan Pickford to stop the fear from spreading.
However, once the storm had passed, there was an opportunity for Everton and how they took it. McNeil, the outstanding player of the game, waltzed in the goal that settled things and while Alexis Mac Allister got a consolation, Everton would have the final say.
Fittingly, it was McNeil, who fired left again, unleashing a crackerjack drive that fired into the top corner. The home fans flocked to the exits, their counterparts not wanting to go home. Luck does that to you.