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Bournemouth knock out Everton in Goodison Park’s last FA Cup tie

<span>Daniel Jebbison scores Bournemouth’s second goal past Everton's Jordan Pickford.</span><span>Photograph: Peter Powell/Reuters</span>
Daniel Jebbison scores Bournemouth’s second goal past Everton's Jordan Pickford.Photograph: Peter Powell/Reuters

Goodison Park commemorated Everton’s history in the FA Cup before kick-off, the Park End awash with banners related to the club’s five triumphs in the competition. Bournemouth consigned Goodison’s FA Cup story to history. Cup ties have been played at this famous old stadium for 132 years. There will never be another.

Andoni Iraola’s tireless, intelligent team tormented Everton once again. After the dramatic comeback here in August and last month’s win at the Vitality Stadium, the final act for Sean Dyche, Bournemouth made it a hat-trick of victories over Everton this season to advance into the fifth round. The final FA Cup act for Goodison centred on two first-half mistakes from James Tarkowski, who conceded a penalty scored by the impressive Antoine Semenyo and lost possession for Daniel Jebbison’s strike. David Moyes’s side reacted strongly in the second half but hit a post three times and had another attempt cleared off the line.

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“It’s not our day when it goes like that,” rued the Everton manager. “At least we showed bit of gumption in the second half and tried to get ourselves back into the game but we conceded two terrible goals.” Moyes put the Goodison angle into perspective. “Real Evertonians who have watched the club over many years will have seen great teams who got to finals and won trophies. They will remember them and not today.”

The tie was a subdued, scrappy affair until a combination of Bournemouth’s polished approach play and Tarkowski’s leaden feet gave the visitors a penalty. Milos Kerkez, the Hungary left-back linked with a move to Liverpool, released Semenyo behind a static Everton defence with a lovely cushioned volley from Dean Huijsen’s long ball. The powerful forward advanced into the area where he was unceremoniously upended by Tarkowski’s foul. Semenyo picked himself up to convert a blatant penalty into Jordan Pickford’s bottom corner. Pickford went the right way but was beaten by the pace of Semenyo’s spot-kick.

Tarkowski’s second costly mistake arrived shortly before the interval when, under no pressure after receiving a Pickford goal-kick, he pinged a pass straight to Marcus Tavernier. The Bournemouth winger’s shot deflected into the path of Jebbison, who bundled the ball past the Everton goalkeeper at the second attempt.

Everton had been careless in possession, culpable for their own downfall and unable to keep their feet at times, with Idrissa Gueye and Jesper Lindstrøm repeatedly slipping over. Even so, the boos that followed them down the tunnel at half-time – admittedly from a minority of the home crowd – were ridiculous. Rebuilding a connection between the team and fans is a priority for Moyes and, as he said before the game, key to players being able to perform with freedom. They were applauded off at full time, in fairness.

The hosts’ improved considerably after the restart, performing with the intensity and positivity that had been absent before the break. The introduction of recent loan signing Carlos Alcaraz was a major factor, but there would be no reward. The frame of Kepa Arrizabalaga’s goal saw to that.

It was clearly not Tarkowski’s or Everton’s day. The central defender just failed to connect with a James Garner corner that flew across the Bournemouth six-yard box. Alcaraz, fouled 25 yards from goal after a surging run from midfield, swept the resulting free-kick against a post with Arrizabalaga rooted to the spot. Iliman Ndiaye flicked an Ashley Young corner towards goal only for Semenyo to head off the line. Alcaraz kept the pressure on, fellow substitute Jack Harrison crossed to the back post and Jake O’Brien headed against the woodwork from two yards out. Another Harrison cross then sailed over the Bournemouth defence, hit the inside of the same post and rebounded into the grateful arms of the visiting keeper. The three attempts against the woodwork and Semenyo’s clearance were condensed into the space of five minutes.

At the other end Pickford saved from substitute Justin Kluivert and at close range from Semenyo as Bournemouth looked to punish Everton on the counterattack. They had already inflicted enough. “This competition is not just about how you play, it is about soul, it is about belief and the willingness to sacrifice whatever is needed to go to the next round,” said a satisfied Iraola. “I trust we have that even in a young team.”