Everton grabbed a crucial away win as Jack Grealish’s deflected 78th-minute shot sealed a 1-0 victory over a youthful and struggling Bournemouth side. The match produced few clear chances early on, with Jordan Pickford first tested when he parried Antoine Semenyo’s effort after a pass from Amine Adli, an incident that prompted a VAR check for handball but “common sense prevailed” and no penalty was given. Everton grew stronger, nearly scoring when Alex Scott headed James Garner’s corner onto his own crossbar, while Djordje Petrovic later denied Thierno Barry from close range.
Bournemouth offered little going forward and saw Eli Junior Kroupi’s first-half finish ruled offside. With Everton dominating, the breakthrough came when Carlos Alcaraz played in Grealish, who cut inside and fired a right-footed shot that deflected off Bafode Diakite into the bottom corner. Iliman Ndiaye almost doubled the lead, but Petrovic saved well as one goal proved enough for the Toffees.