Clarets’ dismal performance at Goodison earns them a League Cup exit.

Everton defeated Burnley 3-0 Wednesday night at Goodison Park, and we have no concerns about the outcome or Burnley’s elimination from the League Cup this year.

After former Claret James Tarkowski headed in a cross from former Claret Dwight McNeil in the 13th minute, it appeared like a daunting challenge. A second goal early in the second half all but killed our chances, as Everton added a third in stoppage time.

I got to Goodison early and proceeded to meet some friends who are part of the first group in England to organize foodbank collections, Fans Supporting Foodbanks. Back at Goodison, they collaborate with Liverpool supporters on this collaborative initiative, which has grown exponentially thanks to the amazing support they’ve received from both teams.

I met a gentleman there who was a good few years older than me and of the Everton persuasion. He amazed me by rhyming the name of the Burnley squad that won the 1960 championship as we talked about the bygone era of the 1960s.

I eventually took my paper ticket and headed for Bullens Road and the away turnstiles. I’m not sure how it was for those with electronic tickets, but I arrived in under a minute and there were no lines.

I anticipated that there would be a few changes from the Bournemouth team, and there were seven total: in addition to Vitinho, Ameen Al-Dakhil, Dara O’Shea, Josh Cullen, and Sander Berge, there were additions from Arijanet Muric, Hannes Delcroix, Mike Trésor, Nathan Redmond, Jacob Bruun Larsen, and Jay Rodriguez.

I located my chair. Was my vantage point good? Not especially, but I’ve definitely seen worse at Goodison, where I had an unhindered view of the majority of the field—something that many of our supporters won’t have had.

It remains one of the most conventional settings and grounds. The Z-Cars theme played when the teams emerged, followed by the sound of the siren and Grand Old Team. The home team honored their late chairman Billy Kenwright, who had died twelve days before, on a memorable but melancholy night.

The trio of players—his partner Jenny Seagrove, his daughter Lucy Kenwright, and former Everton striker and manager Joe Royle—joined the players on the center circle and held wreaths. A minute of applause preceded the playing of Elton John’s I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues.

Although none of the on-field ex-Burnley players received any support from the Burnley fans during the minute. Dwight McNeil was playing directly in front of us in the first half since we were defending the Park End of the field. I was shocked to see that the booing began as soon as he touched someone. I know he didn’t want to leave in the summer of 2022, but considering the payment Everton—then led by Frank Lampard—had made for his talents, the club made a wise economic decision.

I’m not sure how many times he’d touched the ball before, but in the thirteenth minute, it was played out to him, and he made the ideal cross so Tarkowski could go home almost unopposed. I don’t know if Dwight’s response in front of the Burnley supporters was wise or not, but I’m still perplexed by the hate that was directed at him from the beginning.

We just did not want to fall behind by a goal so early in the match, and although we were having trouble gaining any momentum, it could have gone worse—McNeil himself arguably came the closest with a shot that went over the crossbar.

We eventually managed to establish a foothold, and in the latter part of the first half, we showed signs of being able to at least tie the game. The most of the excellent play came from Berge and Redmond, but Everton’s strong defense prevented us from scoring, and the one time we did manage to get in, they made a fantastic block to keep it out.

Even though we were behind at the break, there was still hope that we would continue to play better in the second half and have a chance to catch up. Those dreams were short-lived. We were fortunate not to have to wait five and a half minutes for VAR, which was not in use, when we conceded one goal that was called offside. However, a few minutes later, they earned a corner, and we managed to concede from a set piece once more. This time, the two former Clarets were involved once more. Tarkowski headed down McNeil’s corner, and before Amadou Onana scored from close range, it was touched off by Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

The second half lasted just eight minutes, but that was all. We were a defeated team, and we never gave the impression that we might win. We made three substitutes just after the hour, but it had no impact at all.

While not beating drums or waving flags, many of our supporters were really disappointed, and others were furious. “It’s a difficult watch when you know you are beaten,” a buddy of mine said. I completely concur.

It was a terrible second half and became worse during stoppage time. Beto easily defeated Al-Dakhil down their left side, and Ashley Young, 38, met his low ball into the box and scored from close range by getting between the motionless O’Shea and Delcroix.

Wilson Odobert, who had came on as a replacement, managed to score our first goal on target, even though his genuine goal should have been to cross the ball. It encapsulated our evening.

That was it; our League Cup run ended in the fourth round for the fourth consecutive year. Perhaps we were the underdogs going into the match, but this was just too simple for an Everton team that was mediocre at best. They faced a non-competitive, incompetent Burnley squad, and to be honest, they didn’t need to give us anything at all to win.

Although Tarkowski stepped over to applaud the Burnley supporters after the final whistle, he was met with great applause from those of us who were still inside Goodison, even if McNeil was jeered.

After the lengthy travels to Brentford and Bournemouth, at least this time it was a short drive home, but we still need to perform far better than we did in these last three games.

The teams were;

Everton: Jordan Pickford, Ashley Young, James Tarkowski, Jarrad Branthwaite, Vitalii Mykolenko, Jack Harrison (Nathan Patterson 80), James Garner, Amadou Onana (Idrissa Gueye 79), Dwight McNeil (Lewis Dobbin 90+4), Arnaut Danjuma (Abdoulaye Doucouré 68), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (André Gomes 68). Subs not used: João Virginia, Michael Keane, Ben Godfrey, Ramalho Youssef Chermiti.

Burnley: Arijanet Muric, Vitinho (Connor Roberts 83), Ameen Al-Dakhil, Dara O’Shea, Hannes Delcroix, Josh Cullen, Sander Berge (Jack Cork 83), Mike Trésor, Nathan Redmond (Anass Zaroury 66), Jacob Bruun Larsen (Wilson Odobert 66), Jay Rodriguez (Zeki Amdouni 66). Subs not used: Lawrence Vigouroux, Charlie Taylor, Han-Noah Massengo, Josh Brownhill.
Yellow Cards: Ameen Al-Dakhil, Vitinho.

Referee: Michael Salisbury (Preston).

Attendance: 38,841.