In case there was any doubt that Everton are better without David Moyes (there wasn't), they made it abundantly clear on Sunday, thrashing Manchester United 2-0 at Goodison Park. The Toffees were even better than the scoreboard would suggest, dominating the match to remain just one point back of Arsenal for fourth place.
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For United and Moyes, the match was a disaster. They never looked like they were in the same class as Moyes' former team and just about cemented themselves into seventh place, raising even more questions about whether the manager will be back this season.
Everton were happy to concede possession to the Red Devils, easily defending and waiting for United to give them space on the counterattack. When they did, Man United couldn't handle them, allowing Everton tons of space.
The Toffees went in front just before the half-hour mark and they did it from the penalty spot. Phil Jones went to ground to stop block a Romelu Lukaku shot, and he did block it, but he did so with an outstretched arm and the referee pointed to the spot. There, Leighton Baines was able to beat David De Gea and the Toffees were in front.
The match didn't change much after the goal, with United continuing to have possession that they did absolutely nothing with. Whenever they did manage a shot, it came from distance and Tim Howard was not worried. Their set pieces didn't threaten much either as the Toffees were able to defend without much effort.
With United unable to generate much going forward, they decided to send more players forward and that just opened them up for an Everton counter, which netted the Toffees a goal in the 43rd minute. The Toffees struck quickly and while United were able to get a few men back, they were completely lost. Then, Alex Buttner held Kevin Mirallas onside as Seamus Coleman played him in on goal. Mirallas, despite being at a sharp angle, hit a bullet into the lower corner and Everton led 2-0.
Manchester United had a couple chances in the second half, with Wayne Rooney getting a couple looks at goal, but he wasted them. On his first opportunity, he took one touch too many and couldn't get the shot away, then later on he was in all alone on Howard, but shot at the goalkeeper and had it tipped over the bar. Chris Smalling also had a chance late, but his header went well wide.
Everton had their chances in the second half too, but they didn't need to finish. They were the significantly better team, and while their Champions League dreams stayed alive, United's died. With the loss, they were officially eliminated from top-four contention.
Everton: Howard, Baines, Distin (Alcaraz 45'), Coleman, Stones, Mirallas, Naismith, McCarthy, Barry, Barkley (Osman 70'), Lukaku.
Goals: Baines 28', Mirallas 43'.
Manchester United: De Gea, Jones, Evans (61'), Smalling, Buttner, Mata, Carrick, Nani (61'), Fletcher, Kagawa (Welbeck 75'), Rooney.