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For about 40 minutes, including the half-time break, an era that dated back to the time Winston Churchill was prime minister was ending. As it stood, Everton’s 69-year stay in the top flight was entering its final throes. A first relegation since 1951 beckoned. This threatened to be a historic ignominy. Instead, it produced a place in Goodison Park folklore for Abdoulaye Doucoure; given the concerns about Everton’s finances and the question if the club could continue as a going concern without Premier League revenues, the midfielder might not have just been their savour in a footballing sense. But a rescuer he was. There were fireworks outside Goodison; those inside came from Doucoure’s right boot. A bearpit so often as Everton beat the drop last season, their rickety home was subdued, anxious, expecting the worst as Leicester led. Then it erupted. Because then Adam Smith headed out of the Bournemouth box. The ball sat up obligingly but Doucoure connected beautifully, hammering in a half volley from 20 yards. Mark Travers was motionless. Everton extended his contract this week; Doucoure repaid that, his £20m transfer fee and much more with a swing of his right foot. Marginalised under Frank Lampard, he become strangely, crucially prolific for Sean Dyche. The former Burnley manager was denied signings by the club’s ineptitude at the end of the January transfer window but the recalled Doucoure at least offered an injection of impetus. This was his fifth goal for the new manager. Two of the others came in the astonishing 5-1 triumph at Brighton, the most unlikely and ultimately decisive result in the relegation battle. And in a game high on tension and low on clear-cut opportunities – not least because Everton lacked the creativity to fashion them or a centre-forward of any kind – that sufficed. One-nil, the classic Dyche scoreline, came courtesy of plenty of perspiration and one moment of inspiration. This has been a successful salvage job by Dyche: his brand of grit has been unglamorous but his team of workhorses ground out a victory. Their destiny was in their hands and Everton clutched it. They could savour a wholehearted block from Yerry Mina and a wonderful tackle by Conor Coady on Dominic Solanke; two defenders Dyche had omitted were recalled in recent weeks and responded, excelling in what may prove their last games for the club. They could savour a terrific save by Jordan Pickford, parrying Matias Vina’s volley. They had to withstand 10 minutes of added time, some of it a product of Pickford’s timewasting. Amadou Onana punched the air when he won a throw. Then came the blessed relief of the final whistle: Pickford and Coady charged towards the Gwladys Street End until Everton’s players were swamped by a pitch invasion, the blue smoke from flares clouding the air. And so Goodison Park, which first staged top-flight football in 1892, will do so again in its final fixture in 2024 before Everton move to a new ground at Bramley-Moore Dock. Everton will make it 70 consecutive seasons in either the old Division 1 or the Premier League. But the jubilation had not lasted long before a chorus of “sack the board”. Once again, Everton have stumbled towards crisis, only to somehow spare themselves. The £600m of spending in the transfer market during Farhad Moshiri’s ownership has produced a team that only procured 36 points. Dyche did well to take 21 from his 18 matches in charge. For a game of such importance, he ended up with what was both a logical team selection and an utterly ludicrous one. Dyche picked his best available 11, but none of them are a specialist striker or a full-back. A manager with a marked preference for a regimented 4-4-2 formation ended up with a 3-3-3-1 more associated with Marcelo Bielsa and with three men out of position: James Garner and Dwight McNeil as wing-backs and Demarai Gray as a lone striker. Dyche was forced to improvise: Everton showed urgency, but also incoherency in an enforced experiment. It took Everton half an hour to carve out a chance of note and then, after an incisive pass from Amadou Onana, Idrissa Gueye’s shot was tipped over. Travers also clawed away a lob from Garner and parried a header from Gray that a proper centre-forward would probably have scored. But then came a goal of both great quality and huge importance. For Doucoure, a status alongside Graham Stuart, Gareth Farrelly and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the men who delivered the dramatic goals to spare Everton relegation in 1994, 1998 and 2022. There are times when Everton have needed to be the great escapologists. But even in mediocre seasons, with undistinguished teams, they have found a hero, produced an uplifting end. Everton are the great constants in the top division. Ever-presents since the 1950s, they will return once more next year where Leicester and Leeds will not. Read More Leicester’s unexpected twist provides reminder of football’s new reality Wigan already facing threat of second relegation with double points deduction From Netflix disaster to the Premier League? Sunderland seek to leave chaos behind Coventry aim to come full circle after journey to hell and back I apologise I didn’t do better – Sam Allardyce says sorry after Leeds relegated Mikel Arteta pleased to see Granit Xhaka given appreciation from Arsenal fans

Roberto De Zerbi has said that he believes Arsenal and Liverpool targets Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo have played their last game for Brighton.

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In a tough battle to keep the top spot and add points between themselves and hot contenders St. Louis CITY SC, the Seattle Sounders enjoyed 25 minutes of Jordan Morris' game as he scored at the 22' mark before subbing out three minutes later.

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Austin FC's veteran striker Gyasi Zardes opened the scoreboard Saturday night with his 100th MLS goal during the Copa Tejas match against state rivals the Houston Dynamo.

The Dynamo came back from a goal deficit to beat state rivals Austin FC 2–1 and take the Copa Tejas in front of 16,055 fans at the Shell Energy Stadium.

The Philadelphia Union did not jump out of the gate the way they were expected to for the 2023 MLS Season but since losing to Cincy in early April, the squad's gone unbeaten in seven matches (5W, 2D).

Roberto Firmino concluded his Liverpool career in a helter-skelter 4-4 Premier League draw against Southampton

Liverpool blew a two-goal lead before battling back from 4-2 down to end an underwhelming Premier League season with a remarkable 4-4 draw at relegated Southampton. Quick-fire finishes from Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota salvaged a point for Jurgen Klopp’s side on a chaotic afternoon at St Mary’s. Saints had looked set to end a miserable campaign in style after Kamaldeen Sulemana’s brace and strikes from James Ward-Prowse and Adam Armstrong overturned early goals from Jota and Roberto Firmino. But Southampton’s final match under manager Ruben Selles, who is expected to be replaced by Swansea boss Russell Martin in the coming days, ended all square after Gakpo and Jota struck in the space of a minute. Fifth-placed Liverpool went close to leaving the south coast with maximum points as Mohamed Salah inadvertently struck a post and was denied by a fine stop from Alex McCarthy late on. But the Merseyside club had to be content with extending their unbeaten top-flight run to 11 games, having begun the day knowing they would miss out on a top-four finish for the first time since 2015-16. James Milner and Firmino started on their farewell appearances for the Europa League-bound Reds as manager Klopp made seven changes, including selecting Caoimhin Kelleher in goal. With Southampton seeking to restore a modicum of pride after their fate was sealed a fortnight ago, Liverpool initially looked like they would canter to victory. Dreadful defending gifted the visitors the 10th-minute opener as Jota fired into an unguarded net from close range after being teed up by a woeful pass from Romeo Lavia as Saints attempted to play out from the back. Firmino swiftly doubled the Reds’ advantage, collecting a pass from Fabinho on the edge of the hosts’ 18-yard box before dummying his way beyond Lyanco and Jan Bednarek and driving through the legs of Saints goalkeeper McCarthy. There was a strong sense of deja vu for long-suffering home fans who have witnessed just two home league wins all season but Southampton responded by showing the fight they have so often lacked. Long-serving midfielder Ward-Prowse – who was potentially making his final Saints appearance ahead of a mooted summer move – halved the deficit in the 19th minute by coolly slotting into the bottom-right corner after being picked out by Carlos Alcaraz. And Selles’ side were level just nine minutes later. Firmino sloppily conceded possession to Lavia close to the halfway line as Liverpool attempted to break, allowing Theo Walcott to slide in Sulemana, who fired his first goal in English football under Kelleher. Sulemana stylishly completed Southampton’s stunning comeback just two minutes into the second period. The Ghana international collected the ball midway inside his own half, eased past Fabinho and then accelerated unchallenged to the edge of the box before bending into the bottom-right corner and celebrating with a backflip. And the Reds were soon facing a major uphill battle to salvage something as substitute Armstrong made an immediate impact. A minute after replacing Lavia, the striker intercepted Jordan Henderson’s careless pass and raced forward before his low-angled finish into the bottom-right corner seemed to catch Kelleher out of position. Liverpool were stunned by the extraordinary turnaround but intent to protect an unbeaten run dating back to April 1. Gakpo – a one-time Southampton target – halved Saints’ lead by tapping in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s volleyed cross in the 72nd minute before Jota found space to lash home his second from Salah’s pass moments later. Salah almost snatched victory for the Reds 11 minutes from time but his attempted control from a long pass struck the left post after looping over the head of McCarthy and the spoils were shared. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Sean Dyche planning major changes at Everton after avoiding relegation Frank Lampard believes Chelsea standards have slipped as cheerless campaign ends Erik ten Hag backs Man Utd to win FA Cup and end neighbours City’s treble charge

Granit Xhaka marked his farewell appearance for Arsenal with a brace to help the Premier League runners-up finish their fine campaign with a 5-0 thrashing of Wolves. Xhaka is set to depart the Emirates this summer to join Bayer Leverkusen and signed off a rollercoaster seven years in north London on a high with a first-half double, although he did later miss a great chance for his hat-trick. It failed to spoil the perfect goodbye for the previously much-maligned former Arsenal captain with Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Jakub Kiwior also on target to ensure Mikel Arteta’s men regrouped from their title disappointment at Nottingham Forest last weekend to secure a 26th league win of the season. While Xhaka’s impending departure had yet to be confirmed, the huge cheer that greeted his name before kick off played into the narrative this was his final Arsenal outing. It was the latest evidence of his own remarkable turnaround with the Emirates crowd, who he had clashed with so memorable in the winter of 2019 during a match with Crystal Palace – an incident that saw him stripped of the captaincy and on the verge of leaving before Arteta’s intervention. Xhaka immediately set about living up to his lead role with a strong tackle on Matheus Nunes a matter of seconds into the contest. While Nunes saw a fierce effort headed away by Gabriel Jesus during the opening exchanges, it did not take long for Arsenal and their number 34 to open the scoring after 11 minutes. Unorthodox right-back Thomas Partey passed out wide to Jesus and his whipped cross was headed home by Xhaka from close range to begin his farewell in style. After a group celebration with his team-mates, the Swiss international held his hands out in a thank you gesture to the home fans in the Clock End. Three minutes later and Xhaka made it 2-0 to Arsenal. Saka dribbled past Hugo Bueno before Martin Odegaard flicked on his pass, which Wolves captain Max Kilman sliced into the path of Xhaka, who side-footed beyond Jose Sa from six yards. Xhaka celebrated his ninth goal of the season, the best tally of his career, by running over to embrace injured midfielder Mohamed Elneny, the only player still at the club from when he joined in 2016. Arsenal were not ready to take their foot off the gas and Arteta watched his side move into a three-goal lead in the 27th-minute. Odegaard and Leandro Trossard exchanged passes before the latter found Saka, who checked back inside Kilman brilliantly and curled into the corner to mark his new contract with a 15th goal this season. It should have been 4-0 soon after. A one-two between Saka and Odegaard on the right saw the goalscorer scuff an effort across the face of goal, but Xhaka fluffed his lines from 10 yards and sliced wide with a hat-trick at his mercy. Wolves were able to avoid any further damage before half-time and Julen Lopetegui introduced Ruben Neves and Rayan Ait-Nouri but it failed to stem the tide. Partey had the ball in the net for Arsenal in the 52nd minute but his joy was short-lived with the goal ruled out after Ben White had barged into Wolves goalkeeper Sa. The Gunners faithful did not have to wait too much longer for the fourth goal. Arsenal hurt the visitors down the left this time with Trossard able to chip in for Jesus to power home a header at the back post in the 58th minute. All that was left was Xhaka’s farewell with the midfielder substituted to a standing ovation in the 75th minute, which was followed with chants urging him to stay. Kiwior grabbed a fifth with 12 minutes left when he lashed home from a corner that Sa should have saved before Arsenal’s season ended to the backdrop of a partisan atmosphere at a sun-soaked Emirates with the home fans hoping this is just the beginning for Arteta’s young team. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Sean Dyche planning major changes at Everton after avoiding relegation Frank Lampard believes Chelsea standards have slipped as cheerless campaign ends Erik ten Hag backs Man Utd to win FA Cup and end neighbours City’s treble charge