A Shorthanded Everton FC Falls to AFC Bournemouth At MetLife Stadium
- Daniel Rebain
- Jul 26
- 6 min read
Photo credit: Premier League
East Rutherford, NJ — The English Premier League made its annual return to the New York/New Jersey area with Everton, Bournemouth, Manchester United, and West Ham United opening the 2025 Summer Series at MetLife Stadium.
Everton started off the game on the front foot, connecting passes and creating dangerous chances in the attacking third of the field. Unable to break through in the first 45 minutes would ultimately cost the Evertonians on their first stop in the United States.
"I thought we did quite well in the first half," said Everton head coach David Moyes. "We had five players playing out of position today. They had done a great job in containing [Bournemouth], and we had some opportunities ourselves. No excuses, but it was always going to be difficult with the lack of numbers we had."
The second half was a complete 180° from the first 45 minutes, with Bournemouth taking the game to Everton. They scored three times, with goals from Philip Billing, Dango Ouattara, and Daniel Adu-Adjei to propel the Cherries to a 3-0 victory.
Everton had just 16 senior players dressed for the game, and David Moyes said prior to the game that he is hoping to sign around "nine to ten" players before the transfer window closes on September 1st.
The Toffees have brought in just two new players this summer transfer window, with the signing of striker Thierno Barry for €30,000,000 from Villareal and back-up goalkeeper Mark Travers for ~€4,500,000 from Bournemouth.
There are also rumors of a €9,000,000 bid for 19-year-old left back Adam Aznou accepted by Bayern Munich and a ~€36,000,000 bid submitted for 20-year-old Olympique Lyon winger Malick Fofana. Even with all this activity, Everton needs to continue to add to their squad.
"I think the coaching and recruitment staff will be working tirelessly to get players in," said Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford. "We need it, we need a competitive squad. At this moment in time, we are what we are. As a squad, we need to work hard each game and push each other on the training pitch."
To kick off the game, Everton looked like the better side, using the athleticism and technical abilities of their attackers to open up spaces behind the Bournemouth midfield. Two players that stood out for the Toffies were Iliman Ndiaye and Beto.
The Senegalese international Ndiaye was having a field day in the first half down the left wing, consistently torching his marker with his agility. If there was nowhere to go, he would free himself up with one or two dribbles through a defender.
Ndiaye had Everton's first opportunity to score in the 7th minute when he received a pass from Tim Iroegbunam just inside the penalty box and put his left-footed shot just wide of the post.
Everton would get their first of three shots on goal in the 21st minute off the foot of Charly Alcaraz. On a Bournemouth clear inside the box, Iboegbunam won a secondary ball in midfield and poked it to Alcaraz, whose shot would be palmed away by former New England Revolution goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic.
The Argentine was a perfect fit for David Moyes' system at the end of last season and signed with the club permanently this summer for $15,000,000 from Brazilian club Flamengo.
To close out the first half, Everton had their chance to strike and take a lead into the halftime break. Attacking the space on the right side of the midfield, Alcaraz was able to play a through ball to Beto, darting in behind the Bournemouth defense. Beto was able to get a lunging effort on target that tested Petrovic, but the Cherries goalkeeper was able to make a save with his left shoulder.
Beto's game oozes athletic excellence on the field. With his big frame, his holdup ability was on full display. Beto could receive a pass, hold off a defender, and start an attack with a quick burst of pace into the open field. That formula was working for Everton throughout the first 45 minutes, and Beto was a real danger to the Bournemouth defense.
The second half was a different story for the Toffees. Bournemouth exploited Everton's makeshift defense and would open the scoring in the 55th minute on a rocket of a shot from Philip Billing just outside the penalty box.
Four minutes later, the Cherries would make it 2-0 thanks to a misplay from Nathan Patterson. The Scottish international did a good job of stealing the ball away from Dango Ouattara. Patterson quickly coughed up the ball, and Ouattara pounced, smashing it past Jordan Pickford at the near post.
Another Everton error would lead to Bournemouth making it 3-0 in the 69th minute. Jake O'Brien, who usually plays right back for David Moyes, intercepted a pass and dangerously attempted to play the ball back to Pickford in goal.
O'Brien's pass was a weak one, and Daniel Abu-Adjei quickly beat the Everton goalkeeper to the ball and poked it past Pickford to seal the Toffees' fate at MetLife Stadium.
With the game officially out of reach, Everton brought on their €30,000,000 man, Thierno Barry, to make his debut for the Toffees.
"I have to say Thierno [Barry] did quite well when he came on," said David Moyes. I thought he held the ball up quite well, ran, and had a couple of moments. If there were any [positives], it was getting him 15-20 minutes, and let's hope he can build on that."
Barry will be a vital part of Everton's offense this season, after the club scored just 42 goals in 38 matches last season, the fourth fewest in the Premier League. A towering figure at 6'5, Barry scored 11 goals and provided four assists in his only season in Spain's La Liga.
The French-born striker brings a blend of physical dominance, quick-footed creativity, and clinical finishing. A partnership with the 6'4.5 Beto leading the attack could be a frightening sight for the opposition this season in England.
Just before full time, Jordan Pickford was called into action once again to keep the score from looking any worse. Pickford was under siege in the second half, especially since Everton consistently made errors leading to Bournemouth's chances.
Remy Ress-Dottin and Antoine Semenyo played a slick one-two to get Ress-Dottin behind the Everton defense and was one-on-one with England's number one goalkeeper. Pickford, making himself big, was able to react quickly to the shot at his near post and get a strong left hand on the ball for his third save of the game.
"It's preseason. It's about getting fit and getting sharp," said Jordan Pickford. "Ideally, I don't like playing Premier League opposition in preseason; you want to be playing them in the league. It is what it is, but we'll keep working as a team and keep building."
Led by three second-half goals in 14 minutes, AFC Bournemouth defeated Everton FC to open up the 2025 Premier League Summer Series at MetLife Stadium. Next stop for both teams on the tour is Soldier Field in Chicago on Wednesday, July 30th. Everton will take on West Ham United, while Bournemouth will play Manchester United, with kick-off for the first game set for 6:30 pm.
Match Facts
Everton FC: 3-4-3 (HC: David Moyes)
Jordan Pickford (GK): Vitalii Mykolenko, Jake O'Brien, Nathan Patterson; Dwight McNeil, Idrissa Gueye, Tim Iroegbunam, James Garner; Iliman Ndiaye, Beto, Charly Alcaraz
Bench: Thierno Barry, Youssef Chermiti, Justin Clarke, Isaac Heath, Aled Osian Thomas, Harrison Armstrong, Tyler Onyango, Harry Tyrer, Mark Travers
AFC Bournemouth: 4-2-3-1 (HC: Andoni Iraola)
Djordje Petrovic (GK): Adrien Truffert, Marcos Senesi, James Hill, Adam Smith; Marcus Tavernier, Hamed Traore; Dango Ouattara, Evanilson, David Brooks; Ben Winterburn
Bench: Illa Zabarnyi, Harold Ikenna William, Julio Soler, Antoine Semenyo, Alex Scott, Remy Rees-Dottin, Chris Mepham, Romain Faivre, Philip Billing, Julian Araujo, Daneil Adu-Adjei, Alexander Noah Paulsen, Neto, Will Dennis
Scoring Summary (Everton/Bournemouth)
55': Philip Billing (0-1)
59': Dango Ouattara (0-2)
69': Daniel Adu-Adjei (0-3)
Stats (Everton/Bournemouth)
Possession: 40% - 60%
Shots: 11 (3) - 15 (6)
Big Chances: 0 - 1
Expected Goals (xG): 101. - 1.45
Passing: 376 (81%) - 573 (87%)
Fouls: 11 - 14
Corners: 3 - 3
Discipline
27': James Garner (Yellow)
67': Vitalii Mykoylenko (Yellow)
85': Chris Mepham (Yellow)
