Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s superb first-half goal seals 1-0 win for the visitors, who had 10 players for most of the game.
Everton enjoyed their first Premier League win at Manchester United for 12 years despite playing virtually the entire game with 10 men after midfielder Idrissa Gueye was sent off for slapping his own teammate, Michael Keane.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s superb first-half goal on Monday sealed a 1-0 win for the visitors, who shrugged off the 13th-minute incident that had a furious Gueye dismissed after he and Keane squared up.
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United came into the match at Old Trafford on the back of a five-game unbeaten run and could have moved up to fifth with a win.
They dominated possession, especially in the second half, but Everton defended superbly to repel the hosts, who looked blunt in attack.
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made several fine saves to preserve his side’s lead, the pick of them to claw away a Joshua Zirkzee header with 10 minutes remaining.
A second away win of the season lifted Everton above city rivals and champions Liverpool into 11th place, level on 18 points with United, who are above them on goal difference.
Everton suffered a big blow in just the 10th minute when they lost captain Seamus Coleman to injury.
But worse was to follow three minutes later with the scarcely believable bust-up between Gueye and Keane.
The Premier League Match Centre posted on X: “The referee’s call of red card to Gueye for violent conduct was checked and confirmed by VAR – with the action deemed to be a clear strike to the face of Keane.”
Gueye is the first Premier League player to be sent off for fighting with a teammate since 2008.
The home crowd anticipated waves of attack, but United failed to take advantage of their numerical advantage, proving toothless against David Moyes’s battling team.
Instead, it was 10-man Everton who found the net, taking the lead courtesy of a wonderful strike by Dewsbury-Hall in the 29th minute.
Dewsbury-Hall received the ball and surged towards goal, beating Bruno Fernandes and Leny Yoro before bending the ball into the top corner.
United huffed and puffed for the rest of the half, with Pickford clawing away a Fernandes shot from a distance as the half-time approached.
Ruben Amorim, marking the first anniversary of his maiden game in charge of United, brought on Mason Mount for Noussair Mazraoui at half-time, but his team created little, despite dominating possession.
Amorim threw on Kobbie Mainoo and Diogo Dalot for Casemiro and Yoro in the 58th minute, but still, United looked blunt.
Pickford kept out a powerful Zirkzee header with just over 10 minutes of normal time to go, and Everton hung on for a famous win.
Speaking after the game, Dewsbury-Hall said it was a “rollercoaster” of a game.
“I’m so genuinely happy for the lads and how hard they worked. A fantastic performance of gritting away, getting a goal and keeping that spirit,” he said. “So glad we got the three points.”
He said Gueye apologised to the team at full-time for the incident with Keane.
“We move on from it. The reaction from us was unbelievable. Top tier,” Dewsbury-Hall said.
“We could have crumbled, but if anything, it made us grow.”
United defender Matthijs de Ligt said the result and performance were a “step back” for his side after a decent run.
“I think the game says enough; against 10 men for 70 minutes and not creating that many chances,” the Dutch defender told Sky Sports. “Today was not a good night for us.
“We lacked the patience to play through the lines, and we crossed a lot of balls. We need to do a lot more.
“In all aspects today, it felt like a step back. Not just the result, but the intensity and the focus.”
