Everton were fifth in the table and Arsenal one place above them when the two sides met at Goodison Park ON THIS DAY in 2014.
The Blues also had a game in hand and so the showdown on 6 April really was a Champions League-chasing six-pointer…and Everton were magnificent.
Steven Naismith opened the scoring in the 14th minute when he nudged the ball into the back of the net after Wojciech Szczesny had saved an effort from Romelu Lukaku.
Roberto Martinez had already made a substitution by then after Leon Osman suffered a freak facial injury that required stitches. To add insult to injury, Osman was booked for the foul on Bacary Sagna that led to the accident!
The second goal came in the 34th minute and it was a wonderful solo effort from Lukaku, who picked the ball up near the halfway line and powered forward before unleashing an unstoppable shot past Szczesny.
The game-clinching goal capped a miserable return to Goodison for Mikel Arteta – the Spaniard put through his own net to make it 3-0.
Everton were just as good ON THIS DAY in 2007 when Chris Coleman brought his Fulham side to Goodison Park.
The Blues were again chasing a European slot but they fell behind in the 22nd minute against a visiting team that included three former Everton players – Simon Davies, Tomasz Radzkinski and Brian McBride.
Carlos Bocanegra was the scorer, heading home a Davies corner.
Everton levelled a few minutes later when Lee Carsley, sporting a head bandage after an early clash, turned in a centre from Joleon Lescott, and then Alan Stubbs headed an Arteta free-kick past Antti Niemi.
The lead was stretched on the stroke of half-time when James Vaughan made it 3-0 – Arteta once more the provider.
The Spaniard also created the fourth Everton goal ten minutes from time when he teed up Victor Anichebe for a cool finish. The 4-1 win lifted the Blues up to fifth in the table.
Marc Hottiger scored his one and only Everton goal ON THIS DAY in 1996. Joe Royle’s UEFA Cup-chasing Blues were at home to Bolton Wanderers and after the visitors failed to deal with Duncan Ferguson in the penalty area in the 21st minute, the ball bounced to Hottiger who drilled it powerfully into the bottom corner of the net.
It stayed at 1-0 until the last five minutes before Andrei Kanchelskis beat the Bolton offside trap to score and then Daniel Amokachi burst through the defence to place a neat finish past Gavin Ward.
