Before this game, Bournemouth took to social media to share a picture of Everton’s hallowed home ground. “At Goodison Park for the last time”, the caption read.

They are probably sad to see the Blues leave the Grand Old Lady given the fun they have had in this part of L4 this season. For the second time their players were able to celebrate in front of the away end here after a memorable victory that again showcased how far they have come - and how far the Toffees have fallen.

Despite that, the hosts almost rallied. Second half changes, including the introduction of deadline day signing Carlos Alcaraz, almost turned the match on its head. Alcaraz curled a free-kick against the post and Jack Harrison and Jake O’Brien also hit the woodwork during a frantic 10 minute barrage. Iliman Ndiaye saw a header glanced off the line by Antoine Semenyo in the same period. Everton had no luck, whether or not they deserved it.

READ MORE: Everton player ratings as James Tarkowski has nightmare and three others poor vs Bournemouth

READ MORE: David Moyes' priority now clear as obvious issue leaves Everton looking to future

But the damage was done in the first half, the worst 45 minutes since David Moyes’ return. The ease with which the visitors built their 2-0 lead simply served to highlight the gulf in quality and, all of a sudden, Moyes’ recent warnings made sense.

His arrival has led to an uplift in form that has lifted Everton nine points clear of a relegation battle they were in the thick of when they travelled home from Bournemouth just four weeks ago.

But while a fanbase began to dream of a spring without sleepless nights, the man whose appointment was the catalyst for Everton’s improvement has insisted, repeatedly, that challenges remain.

That much was evident as Bournemouth exposed the fragility of Everton’s confidence with another gut punch of a display. This was the eighth time in 10 games the Cherries have beaten the Blues. They finished off Sean Dyche on the south coast at the start of 2025. The two wins in four days of hell on the seaside for Everton back in November 2022 marked the beginning of the end for Frank Lampard. Now a third successive Blues boss, Moyes, has felt their wrath. New manager, old nemesis, same story.

Everton are out of the FA Cup and deserve to be. Fuelled by recent results and performances, the Blues went into this fourth round tie full of hope. Goodison, as it has since the return of Moyes, felt a different place to the torturous environment it became in the final days of Dyche. The flags of The 1878s fan group looked resplendent in the Park End and dreams turned to magical storylines of a cup run 40 years on from the heroic Blues team of 1985 and the FA Cup winning side of 1995.

But Bournemouth are on the cusp of the Champions League places with good reason. A well-drilled, well-disciplined side, they were markedly superior to the crisis-hit Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City that Everton had overwhelmed in recent weeks, and maintained a composure that was beyond the hot mess of the Brighton and Hove Albion team Everton defeated at the Amex in between.

They exposed the deficiencies that Moyes inherited and gave him 90 minutes of tough viewing, an hour and a half in which, the cliche goes with good reason, the 61-year-old probably learned more than he had in the three weeks since his appointment.

Everton received plenty of warnings before this game moved beyond them. James Tarkowski’s long ball to Beto for the second goal was one of several impressive moments in the drubbing of Leicester seven days ago and his ability to launch attacks from deep like a quarterback can be an effective weapon against defences that push up.

Andoni Iraola is no amateur though and he turned what can be strengths - Tarkowski’s range and Beto’s threat behind - into weaknesses that were ruthlessly exploited.

The away side opted against a high back line, forcing Beto to drop deep and play with his back to goal - the role better suited to the injured Dominic Calvert-Lewin. It also heaped pressure on Tarkowski who, with few available options ahead of him, had to delay his release. Daniel Jebbison and Semenyo hassled him relentlessly and earned the rewards as Everton struggled to play out from the back and were constantly caught in possession as short balls into midfield were pounced on by those in red and black.

Semenyo and Tarkowski’s battle was the story of the first half and there was only one winner. When the forward was flicked behind the centre back after 22 minutes he was approaching goal with menace. Tarkowski chose the wrong option and dived in, bringing him down clumsily.

Referee John Brooks did not have VAR as a safety net for this game but the lunge was so poor that pointing to the spot carried little risk. Semenyo smashed in from 12 yards and the life was sucked from the Goodison stands.

Everton did not respond until after the break. Instead they continued to fall into the same traps set by Iraola and when the second came just before the break it was of little surprise. The home side had narrowly escaped punishment when the ball was lost 30 yards from their own goal and Semenyo drifted the wrong side of Jarrad Branthwaite at an angle down the left.

His shot was hopeful rather than expectant but a wicked deflection from Branthwaite almost took it spinning in at the back post. The resulting corner was cleared but Everton lost possession again. This time the ball fell to Jebbison who shot straight at Jordan Pickford but then watched in delight as the rebound hit him and bobbled goalwards and over the line. The goal was a slice of fortune for Bournemouth but it was deserved. Everton’s players could have few complaints at the break.

The same was true at the end of this match. Aside from that frenetic 10 minutes of near misses, Bournemouth also came close to adding a third. Justin Kluivert forced Pickford into a sprawling stop from distance and Semenyo was denied by a wonderful reaction save. A counter attack in stoppage time almost yielded a third but Kluivert opted for an audacious chip when he had teammates in space. As Iraola turned to attacking players in form, like Kluivert and Dango Ouattara, Moyes threw centre back Michael Keane alongside Beto.

Moyes was clear the Premier League remained his priority as Everton’s form improved in his opening weeks. Everton now have no choice after a frustrating end to Goodison’s cup history. They have just a matter of days to find a response befitting of the final Merseyside derby at this famous venue.