An endgame of pure tumult and tension was foreshadowed by a pulsating, end-to-end first half. Desperate to see their side end a run of four successive defeats, the raucous Goodison crowd did much to provoke an electric atmosphere, and were nearly rewarded early on when Ben Godfrey had a header comfortably saved. Reacting well to this early let-off, Newcastle looked the most likely to score up to HT, flashing numerous dangerous crosses in front of Asmir Begović. New Zealand international Chris Wood had their best opportunities, climbing high to nod straight at the goalkeeper, before sending another header over the bar.
Thumping tackles and wholehearted defending often blocked the path to goal in the first half, but in the second it was an altogether more bizarre entity that obscured the Gwladys Street net. Just a minute after the restart, a protester bearing a red, environmentally-themed shirt cable-tied himself to a goalpost. Bolt cutters were required to release the intruder following several failed attempts, and after a near ten-minute delay, Emil Krafth had a long-range shot saved, before Miguel Almiron’s 70-yard run ended in a pass to Bruno Guimarães, whose bobbling effort was palmed to safety.
Everton then began to reassert some control, and Anthony Gordon’s fizzing 25-yard drive was superbly saved by Martin Dúbravka. However, Everton were shortly reduced to ten men, when Allan was shown a straight red card, following advice from VAR official Stuart Attwell and a monitor review, after scything down Allan Saint-Maximin with a late tackle. Almost capitalising on the man advantage, Joe Willock forced Begović into another sharp stop in added time, as Newcastle made a renewed push for a second successive league double over Everton.
Against all odds, the exhausted ‘Toffees’ struck a killer blow in the 99th minute. Iwobi slotted calmly into the bottom corner from Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s lay-off, netting for the first time since November 1st and ending a 928-day wait for a goal at Goodison Park. Everton pull three points clear of the relegation zone, and remain in possession of games in hand over the other endangered teams, while Newcastle have lost two in a row for the first time since December
