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  • Kick-off: 15:00
  • Venue: Goodison Park
  • Attendance: 36519
  • Referee: Rennie, U

Live Commentary

90mins

The referee blows up for full time.

87mins

James Vaughan slides in to slot the ball home from close range following great work by Kevin Kilbane.

73mins

James Vaughan comes on to replace the injured Gary Naysmith.

67mins

Everton make a change with Lee Carsley coming on to replace Marcus Bent.

61mins

Tony Hibbert is booked following a tackle on Tom Soares.

56mins

Palace make a change with Ben Watson coming on for Aki Riihilahti.

56mins

Vassilis Lakis is also replaced by Sandor Torghelle.

54mins

Tim Cahill grabs his second goal when slotting the ball home following a fine run and cross from Kevin Kilbane.

47mins

Tim Cahill latches on to a cross from Marcus Bent before firing the ball home from close range.

46mins

The second half gets underway.

45mins

The referee blows up for half time.

26mins

Steve Watson comes on to replace the injured Alan Stubbs.

7mins

From the free-kick Mikel Arteta lashes the ball into the back of the net from 20 yards out.

6mins

Gabor Kiraly is handed a yellow card for handling the ball outside his area.

1mins

The referee blows up to get the game underway.

Match Report

Everton regained momentum in the big city battle to reach the Champions League with a 4-0 thumping of a woeful Crystal Palace side at Goodison Park.

A Tim Cahill double, a fine effort from Mikel Arteta and a debut goal from 16-year-old James Vaughan increased their advantage over Merseyside neighbours Liverpool in the race for fourth place.

Everton brought back the iconic Duncan Ferguson in an attempt to halt a run of three straight defeats, which threatened to derail their hunt for Champions League football.

With Liverpool handing over the initiative following their late defeat at Manchester City on Saturday, Everton reverted to a more positive 4-4-2 formation with Marcus Bent partnering the big Scot in attack.

It was midfielder Kevin Kilbane however who came close to breaking the deadlock after just two minutes with a fine 25-yard volleyed effort that landed on top of Gabor Kiraly's net.

It was Kiraly who gifted Everton the chance to take the lead just five minutes later when his momentum carried him outside the box with the ball in his hands.

Spanish journeyman Arteta curled the ball beautifully into the top corner giving the keeper no chance to atone for his error.

The Everton fans, who could have barely raised a sleeping baby with their pre-match welcoming of the teams, were in raptures. The four-point gap over their neighbours was again in sight.

To their credit, Ian Dowie's men quickly shook off the setback to gain some attacking momentum, but some sloppy midfield play soon saw the home side back on the offensive.

The ever-mobile Andy Johnson twisted and turned his way into a shooting position on 24 minutes before Everton kingpin Alan Stubbs was forced off with what looked to be a broken collarbone.

But just as the first half threatened to flicker out, two fine headers within a minute almost turned the game on its head.

On 40 minutes a Danny Granville cross was met superbly by the late-arriving Tom Soares, before Kiraly finally made up for his error with one of the saves of the season from Ferguson's free header.

Ferguson found himself with another great opportunity but struggled to pull the ball from under his feet, before Leon Osman headed over an open goal from 12 yards out.

But Everton waited only a minute after the break to kill the game off with a beautifully worked goal. A fine flicked cross from Bent found Cahill charging into the box and the Australian hit an unstoppable drive into the roof of the net.

He struck again eight minutes into the half when Kilbane was granted a free run through the heart of the Eagles defence to supply a deft cross for the unmarked midfielder to nod home an embarrassingly easy third goal

For the woeful visitors, who made the decidedly average Blues look like world-beaters, it pushed them closer to the drop on a weekend where fellow strugglers Norwich and West Brom both picked up points.

The Eagles briefly flapped their crusty wings when substitute Sandor Torghelle hit the post shortly after coming on and Wayne Routledge fired wide from ten yards, but only the bewildered Johnson looks likely to be plying his trade in the top flight next season.

A late appearance by Goodison youngster Vaughan, who at 16 years and 267 days became the youngest player ever to play for the club, raised the decibel level as Evertonians hope he'll have half the impact of the young kid whose record he surpassed. That wee ankle biter being one Wayne Rooney.

With a minute left, he made it four from Kilbane's cross to make it two Rooney records broken in a quarter-of-an-hour. Once again the future looks bright for the blue half of Merseyside.

Everton Team

Crystal Palace Team

Everton

Crystal Palace

Corners

49

Fouls

1014

Goal attempts

1311

Shots off target

57

Offsides

51

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