Everton can dare to dream.
Saturday’s comprehensive 3-0 win over Chelsea leaves them just three points behind fifth-place Liverpool, who occupy what is highly likely to be a Champions League berth.
There is also still a chance, admittedly small, that seven English teams could qualify for Europe’s elite club competition if Liverpool win this year’s trophy and Aston Villa finish outside the top five but win the Europa League.
All of which is a long-winded way of saying that with seven games to go, European football is very much on for David Moyes’ side — that alone shows the progression made over the past year.
It was only 14 months ago that Moyes was brought in to quell lingering fears of relegation. He and his players started this campaign with the aim of challenging for European qualification, an admirable but seemingly unlikely goal.
Now belief courses through their veins. With each passing week, the dream looks more tangible.
“For Everton to even be in the mix for Europe is unbelievable,” Moyes said in his press conference after Saturday’s win. “It is amazing when you think about the troubles.”
Everton fans during the game at Hill Dickinson Stadium (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
This was Everton’s best performance of the season and the Hill Dickinson Stadium’s crowning moment since it opened for competitive action in August, one it had very much needed. It has not always been easy for Moyes’ side at their new home, but everything finally clicked on Saturday.
In many ways, it was the perfect storm. Everton fans have been deprived of Saturday home games; their last coming three months ago against Arsenal. But this time, they were able to soak up the sun and line the streets of Liverpool’s bars for hours before kick-off. The build-up and sense of expectation were palpable.
The stadium’s waterfront location can be a double-edged sword. When the weather is good, the water glistens on the River Mersey and the nearby docks, fans can walk to the ground, and all feels right with the world. The possibilities seem endless. In bleak midwinter, the wind swirls, the cold bites and grumbles over transport reach a crescendo.
This was a good time for Everton to play Chelsea and, conversely, a bad time for Chelsea to come to Everton.
Home fans gathered on Regent Road before kick-off to welcome the Everton coach as it snaked through the crowds. In a purely logistical sense, the route was hardly necessary, with the team based at the nearby Titanic Hotel, itself only a stone’s throw from the stadium. But this was about something else.
Organised by fan group The 1878s in conjunction with Everton, the coach welcome was an attempt to bring a bit of Goodison Park, their former home, to the new surroundings. And to create the kind of hostile atmosphere that could propel the team to victory.
Kids perched on shoulders. Blue pyro filled the air. If Everton fans have been striving for a semblance of belonging, they may have found it here.
There was always a question over whether the club would replicate the hostility of Goodison at its best. But fuelled by passion and indignation, Saturday’s atmosphere rivalled anything the old ground served up.
A sign outside one of the local bars listed the price of pints at £5.50 ($7.30) for Everton fans and £10.75million for their Chelsea peers — the same amount the west London club were fined for breaching the Premier League’s financial rules.
That may have been in jest, but many of an Everton persuasion consider the punishment incredibly lenient, given that memories are fresh of the initial 10-point deduction, reduced to six on appeal, the Merseyside club received in the 2023-24 season for a breach of the profit and sustainability rules (PSR). That same season, Everton were deducted a further two points for a separate breach, putting their league status at risk.
Those with long memories are unlikely to forget. In his pre-match press conference, Moyes had asked for clarity from the league on Chelsea’s punishment.
Loud boos greeted the Premier League anthem before kick-off. The Chelsea players got a similar response when they did their pre-match huddle. They were roundly jeered whenever they touched the ball. There were banners accusing the Premier League of corruption in the South Stand and chants of “Premier League, corrupt as f***”.
Hours after full time, the Chelsea squad left the stadium to more boos. The atmosphere had stifled them and elevated their hosts, with the noise at times comparable to Goodison’s best.
Everton fans welcome their team coach on Saturday afternoon (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Everton wanted to start fast, use the energy from the crowd and attempt to swamp Chelsea. They had looked to disrupt the huddle, but the match officials did not release the ball onto the pitch until just before kick-off. Everton pressed high from the off, aiming to disrupt Chelsea’s build-up and force errors from a shaky Robert Sanchez. Beto, the scorer of two goals, hustled and harried.
Moyes, prowling the touchline, applauded every tackle. Late on, with the game already won, James Garner and substitute Merlin Rohl chased Enzo Fernandez, sending him crumpling to the turf. He stayed down even as play continued. It was yet another symbol of Everton’s dominance.
“I thought it was our best performance from the first minute,” Moyes said. “It was a brilliant atmosphere tonight — more like Goodison. A big thank you to the support for the help that they gave us.”
NBC Sports pundit Robbie Earle, meanwhile, hit the nail on the head. “Despite Chelsea’s size and the cups they’ve won, there’s a connection at Everton that they (Chelsea) are struggling to find,” he said. “They were beaten by a much better team.”
Everton united, and the new stadium finally as it was meant to be.
Europe remains within touching distance.