- Beto scored a goal to put Everton ahead 2-1 in the 47th minute
- Everton are winless in five Premier League games
- Beto believes Everton still has a chance to qualify for Europe
Everton’s winless run extended to five matches after a 2-2 draw at Crystal Palace on Sunday. Beto continued his red‑hot form, scoring his fifth goal in as many games with a fine individual strike two minutes into the second half.
The striker started ahead of Thierno Barry, who had scored twice against Manchester City, and delivered another assured performance.
Beto scores ninth goal of the season for Everton
The Portuguese forward opened his account for the afternoon with a moment of quality. James Tarkowski launched a long ball down the right side. Beto showed immense strength to hold off defender Maxence Lacroix, turned him inside out, and calmly slotted between the legs of goalkeeper Dean Henderson.
In 70 minutes on the pitch, Beto registered one goal from an Expected Goals (xG) of 0.29. He had two shots, one on target, completed all four of his passes and completed two successful dribbles from two attempts. He also contributed three defensive actions. Beto has scored nine goals this campaign, which are the most for any Everton player this season.
Beto: ‘We are still fighting’
Speaking to Sky Sports after the final whistle, Beto admitted the disappointment of dropping points but refused to give up on European qualification.
“It is a little bit disappointing to get one point – but the game was really difficult,” he said. “They had a really good system. They have good players and a good manager. It is always difficult to come down here to play.
Everton have missed the chance to close the gap on Brighton and Brentford who are four and two points ahead respectively. Everton sit 10th in the table with 49 points.
“We are still fighting. We need to keep going and try to win the next two games. You can say it was a missed opportunity, but we are still in it, so we just need to focus on the next game.”
Everton have two matches remaining. They take on Sunderland at home and Tottenham away on the final game week of the season. European football is still mathematically possible, but the Toffees need maximum points and results elsewhere to go their way.
Meanwhile, Beto’s message is clear: the fight for Europe continues.
