A round-up of how the national media reported on Everton’s 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth at Hill Dickinson Stadium
10:19, 11 Feb 2026Updated 11:15, 11 Feb 2026
After coming from behind to win 2-1 at Fulham on Saturday, the tables were turned on Everton against Bournemouth at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Tuesday as, despite leading 1-0 they were beaten 2-1 by the Cherries. The Blues have now gone six games without a win at their new home on the Mersey waterfront and here’s how the national media reported on the action.
In the Guardian, Andy Hunter, commented on how Everton’s home form pales in comparison to the displays on their travels.
Hill Dickinson Stadium is no place like home for Everton. Not yet, anyway. Sixth place and momentum in the push for European qualification was the tantalising prize for beating Bournemouth but, not for the first time at their plush new stadium, David Moyes’s team let it slip through their grasp.
Andoni Iraola’s visitors extended their unbeaten Premier League run to six games courtesy of second-half headers from Rayan, the 19-year-old Brazilian who could well be their latest gem, and Amine Adli. Bournemouth’s goals and a red card for the Everton defender Jake O’Brien arrived in an eight-minute spell in which the hosts imploded to leave themselves without a home win since 6 December.
Moyes’ side have collected 17 points from their last eight away games but only eight from the last nine at home. Their quest for Europe is floundering on home soil.
“We missed a couple of good chances to get the second goal so we only have ourselves to blame, no one else,” said the Everton manager in a monosyllabic press conference that was over inside three minutes. His anger was palpable.
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Iliman Ndiaye had put Everton ahead from the penalty spot five minutes before the interval and Moyes’s side were superior when reduced to 10 men. But the clinical touch and the resolute defending that Everton routinely show on the road was absent once again.
Thierno Barry squandered two gilt-edged chances while Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall had a goal-bound drive blocked by the impressive James Hill. Both teams were responsible for a turgid, laboured opening half hour in which a disallowed goal by the offside Ndiaye was the only incident of note.
Mercifully, the contest improved after Djordje Petrovic spilled James Garner’s ambitious free-kick into the path of Barry. The striker had to react sharply but, unmarked inside the six-yard box, he sliced woefully wide. European football would be a considerable achievement by Moyes under any circumstances this season, but even more so given the painful lack of quality from Barry and Beto.
Paul Joyce of the Times observed how what seemed like bold tactical moves by Moyes failed to pay off.
David Moyes harbours aspirations of leading Everton into Europe next season, yet until his side take care of matters on their own doorstep that is destined to remain a pipe dream. From a position of relative control, there followed a remarkable unravelling inside eight second-half minutes as they conceded twice, and had Jake O’Brien sent off, as Bournemouth and new Brazilian signing Rayan came to the fore.
Rayan fuelled the comeback with his second goal in three games having earlier conceded a penalty and already appears the sort of astute signing which has become something of a forte for the south-coast club. Moyes, left to lament Thierno Barry’s wastefulness, cut a picture of frustration on the sidelines.
That Everton have collected eight points from their past nine home matches at their new Hill Dickinson home highlights just where improvement is required. This reverse would have been particularly galling with Amine Adli twisting the knife.
Tasked with improving recent results here, Moyes’ intent had been clear to see. Jarrad Branthwaite was drafted back into the defence with a view to his distribution helping Everton build attacks, while there was a home debut for Tyrique George on the left wing following his loan move from Chelsea.
What seemed fine in theory proved more difficult in practice, however, with Everton struggling to muster a convincing attack in the opening half an hour.
A little more than ten minutes later they were ahead – and might have scored two more – though the transformation was as much a result of Bournemouth errors as the hosts suddenly slipping effortlessly through the gears.
Ndiaye then squared for Barry who looked set to atone for that earlier miss until the eye-catching Álex Jiménez made a last-ditch block in his own six-yard box. In truth, Barry should have rendered the right back’s efforts inconsequential. Those let-offs proved crucial.
The Daily Mail’s Lewis Steele remarked on what a huge missed opportunity this was for Everton.
With an hour on the clock, Everton sat sixth in the table, above city rivals Liverpool and closer to leaders Arsenal than the relegation zone. They were 30 minutes from hitting the fabled safety zone of 40 points, prompting fans to start dreaming of the jaunts and haunts of European football that could soon await if they continued this form.
But they were soon brought crashing back down to earth as an eight-minute catastrophic spell halted any talk of a continental tour. Iliman Ndiaye’s first-half penalty was cancelled out by a cheap Rayan header on 61 minutes before fellow winger Amine Aldi put Bournemouth ahead on 64.
Four minutes after that, Everton defender Jake O’Brien was sent off for denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity. Three points were in their grasp and then, bang, they were gone.
David Moyes threw his hands in the air in frustration as the experienced boss knew this was a golden chance tossed away, while striker Thierno Barry sat with his head in his hands on the substitutes bench, looking close to tears after missing two gilt-edged chances earlier.
Six feet or so to their left, Andoni Iraola retained a composed stature but the Basque coach knew this was an eight-minute spell that could define their season.
The 1,000 or so hardy souls who made the long journey in the away end saw that, too. This was an almighty victory for the Cherries, who have fought out of a mid-season slump to now be six unbeaten and back in their own chase for Europe.
In the Independent, Carl Markham recorded how the Blues’ home support is becoming frustrated.
Everton’s struggles to establish the Hill-Dickinson Stadium as a fortress continued as they once again undermined their own efforts in a 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth. Iliman Ndiaye’s first-half penalty had briefly offered a glimpse of European football, a victory potentially lifting them into sixth place.
However, two glaring misses from Thierno Barry, both from six yards, proved pivotal. The Toffees then imploded in a chaotic eight-minute spell in the second half, conceding twice and seeing Jake O’Brien dismissed.
Uncontested headers from £25m January signing Rayan, who atoned for conceding the penalty with a second goal in successive starts, and Amine Adli sealed their fate, a scenario likely to infuriate manager David Moyes. His side have registered just one victory at home since 8 November and have now lost more games (five) than they have won (four) on the banks of the River Mersey, form which will make European football improbable.
So instead of being able to gloat over neighbours Liverpool, they are again looking over their shoulder with the Cherries, Newcastle, Sunderland and Fulham all within striking distance. The visitors had barely been in the game before they turned it on its head just past the hour.
Tarkowski’s header over was the closest Everton came to an equaliser as the emptying ground echoed to boos once again at the final whistle.
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And the ECHO’s own Joe Thomas spotted what David Moyes did on touchline was too late to stop Everton pressing self-destruct button again.
When liman Ndiaye found the side netting from the penalty spot it was the first time in just over a month Everton had taken the lead at home. Just like against Wolves, they pressed self-destruct.
Another home game, another frustrating result. Another missed opportunity. The Blues were ahead and on top after an hour at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Ndiaye had given them the lead just before the break and was slicing through the Bournemouth defence just after it. Only the last-ditch heroics of Alex Toth denied Everton a second as they emerged from the break with genuine intensity.
An eight minute horror show then followed and Everton’s new home emptied to the sound of celebrating away supporters. Bournemouth, like Wolves, Leeds, Brentford, Sunderland and Arsenal have left the Liverpool waterfront happy since Everton last won at home. That is no way to qualify for Europe, whether via the Premier League of the FA Cup.
The most galling thing for David Moyes was that he could see what was coming and was trying to solve the problem just before chaos struck. Vitalii Mykolenko and Tyrique George were leaving the dangerous Rayan in too much space down the left and the manager was pointing to that side of the pitch as he stood with Harrison Armstrong on the touchline.
Armstrong then came on for George as Moyes looked to halt the threat. The only problem was Rayan had escaped attention to head in at the back post before the substitution could be made.
Three minutes later Bournemouth completed the turnaround when Amine Adli headed in from a free-kick that was again woefully defended. A long ball was floated into the box and won by James Hill, who headed across to Adli, whose finish was straightforward with Jordan Pickford having misjudged where the attack would come from.
Everton will have reasonable frustration over the efforts of the clearly offside Enes Unal to win the first header from the free-kick. He did not make contact with it but then neither did Harrison Armstrong at Aston Villa last month, when his presence led to a Jake O’Brien goal being disallowed. Presumably, the officials will argue the fact there were no Everton players around Unal to interfere with meant the goal should stand. But Moyes had every right to be at best confused and at worst angry.
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