EPL: Sunderland Come From Behind to Beat Everton and Boost European Hopes

Everton fall to Sunderland in final home game setback

Everton failed to win their final home league match, leaving them three points off the top eight.

Sunderland stun Everton to move within point of top eight...

Sunderland overturned an early deficit to beat Everton 3-1 at Hill Dickinson Stadium. The result gives them a second win of the season, lifts them to ninth in the table, and leaves them just a point outside the top eight.

Both sides had seen their European hopes fade after winless runs in recent weeks, so a dip in quality during the opening stages wasn’t entirely unexpected.

Neither side created much going forward, but Sunderland controlled possession. That lack of intensity from the hosts left the home crowd frustrated.

The first shot on target came in the 35th minute. James Garner tried his luck from distance, and Robin Roefs gathered it easily. The Dutch goalkeeper was tested more seriously soon after, tipping James Tarkowski’s flicked header wide at the near post for a corner.

David Moyes’ side stepped up the pressure as halftime approached. After Beto missed the chance to get on the end of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s cross, Everton took the lead through a fortunate deflection.

Merlin Rohl cut inside from the right and struck a low shot that took a heavy deflection off Granit Xhaka and went in. The goal was Röhl’s first for Everton and gave the Toffees a halftime lead at home for the ninth time this Premier League season. Only four teams have done that more often.

Everton had lost just one of the previous eight games when leading at the break. But a slow start to the second half and a lift in intensity from Sunderland had the atmosphere at Hill Dickinson Stadium growing tense.

There was good reason for the tension, as moments after Jordan Pickford tipped Trai Hume’s wayward cross over the bar, a poor touch from Jake O’Brien fell to Enzo Le Fée. He squared it to Brian Brobbey, who smashed in his seventh Sunderland goal of the season. It was the first time Sunderland had scored before the hour mark in this campaign.

Chances were rare after the equalizer, but Everton’s lack of conviction proved costly. They had conceded at least two goals in each of their previous five games without a win.

A neat Sunderland move ended with Chris Rigg laying the ball off for Le Fée to slot home the winner, even with Pickford getting a hand to it.

O’Brien’s tough afternoon continued when his close-range header was blocked by Roefs’ shoulder. He was soon substituted for departing Everton captain Seamus Coleman, who finishes as the club’s all-time appearance maker in the Premier League.

THREE POINTS ON THE ROAD 😍#EVESUN pic.twitter.com/h6m6r8W5ga

— Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) May 17, 2026

Pickford could only watch as Habib Diarra’s low cross skipped across the six-yard box untouched. Wilson Isidor was waiting at the back post to tap it in and seal the win.

Everton have now failed to win their final home league game for just the third time in 11 seasons. A poor record of one win in six matches against promoted sides is a big reason they sit three points off the top eight.

Collectors’ items 😅 pic.twitter.com/E44Uq5HXHS

— Sunderland AFC (@SunderlandAFC) May 17, 2026

Sunderland’s first win in five games takes them above Everton and Chelsea in the table. They face Chelsea on the final day in what is shaping up to be an intriguing finish.