Everton Secures 2-0 Victory Over Crystal Palace in Premier League Opener
Everton shook off an early fright and a miserable recent record to open their Premier League season with a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at Hill Dickinson Stadium – their first opening-day victory in five years.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry delivered the goals either side of half-time, sealing Everton’s earliest league win in a campaign since Rafa Benitez oversaw a 3-1 success against Southampton in August 2021. It also snapped an eight-game winless run in the Premier League stretching back to last season’s grim finish.
For Palace, it was a harsh first taste of English top-flight management for Pierre Sage. The Frenchman, who arrived with a glowing reputation after steering RC Lens to an impressive Ligue 1 campaign, became the 15th manager to lose his first Premier League match in charge of the Eagles.
Palace punished for wasteful start
Palace’s problems began before kick-off. Ismaila Sarr, last season’s top scorer with 21 goals in all competitions and the spearhead of their Conference League triumph, was left out of the travelling squad as speculation over a move to Galatasaray rumbled on. His absence loomed large almost immediately.
Inside four minutes, Palace carved out a golden chance. Eddie Nketiah pounced on a weak defensive header from James Tarkowski and slipped the ball across, only for Jean-Philippe Mateta to lash over from inside the area. It was a glaring miss, the kind that sets a tone.
Everton, still patched up at right-back and far from settled, needed a response. They found one. Eight minutes later, Dewsbury-Hall threaded a clever pass into makeshift full-back Merlin Rohl, whose low cut-back found Iliman Ndiaye. The forward struck firmly but straight at Dean Henderson, a let-off for Palace and a warning that Everton were beginning to settle.
The pattern was brutal for Sage. Palace created enough to lead, struck the frame of the goal twice, and still went in behind.
Nketiah and Mateta both hit the woodwork as Palace repeatedly stretched Everton’s back line, only to be denied by the post and some sharp goalkeeping from Jordan Pickford. Each miss tightened the atmosphere, each ricochet off the upright felt like a twist of fate.
Then Everton struck.
Three minutes before the break, Dewsbury-Hall found space on the edge of the area and drilled a precise effort into the far corner. Against the run of the early play, Everton had the lead, and Palace’s earlier wastefulness suddenly looked costly.
Barry doubles up as Everton find their feet
Any hope of a Palace fightback evaporated quickly after the restart. Eight minutes into the second half, the pressure told again.
Ndiaye, increasingly influential, whipped in a vicious cross from the flank. Barry attacked it with conviction, powering a close-range header beyond Henderson to make it 2-0. A simple finish, a ruthless moment. Palace, who had flirted with control in the first half, were now chasing shadows.
The afternoon darkened further for the visitors midway through the second period. Defender Chadi Riad went down in obvious pain and was eventually carried off on a stretcher, appearing to suffer a serious knee injury. It drained what remained of Palace’s resistance and left Sage with another problem to solve in the coming weeks.
Everton still had to work. Without a recognised right-back, they were exposed at times, but Dewsbury-Hall’s composure in midfield and Pickford’s excellent shot-stopping steadied them through the rough patches. Whenever Palace threatened to claw their way back, the England goalkeeper or the woodwork stood in the way.
By the final whistle, the nervousness that had hung over Hill Dickinson for much of last season had been replaced by something very different: noise, belief, and a sense that this new home might finally be starting to feel like just that.
Hill Dickinson starts to feel like home
Moyes had painted the picture on the eve of the season. Everton’s first year at their state-of-the-art stadium on the banks of the Mersey, he said, felt like moving into a new house with only the wallpaper up. Six wins from 19 league games told its own story.
This, though, felt like furniture being moved in. A solid win, moments of quality, a clean sheet, and a crowd that stayed with the team even when Palace were on top.
The relief was tangible. Everton ended last season stumbling, seven matches without a win, questions swirling about the direction of the squad. Here, they looked more assured, if still incomplete. With one or two smart additions before the transfer window closes, the optimism that greeted the final whistle did not feel misplaced.
A brutal welcome for Sage – and a looming reset for Palace
On the opposite touchline, Sage cut a deflated figure as his players and staff trudged off. For all his tactical pedigree, this was a stark introduction to the unforgiving margins of the Premier League.
On another day, with Sarr on the pitch and one of Nketiah or Mateta’s efforts clipping the inside rather than the outside of the post, Palace might have been the ones dancing back to the dressing room. Instead, they were left counting the cost of missed chances, a key injury, and a reminder that last season’s highs offer no guarantees.
Palace have ridden an extraordinary wave over the past 12 months, lifting three trophies, including the FA Cup. Even the most optimistic supporters knew a reset was coming after Oliver Glasner’s departure. The exit of defender Maxence Lacroix and the real possibility of losing Sarr before the window shuts only deepen that sense of transition.
Replicating the success of 2025 and 2026 will be a formidable task. The question now is whether this defeat is just a sharp jolt at the start of a new era, or the first sign that the Eagles are about to find out how hard it is to stay at the summit.
