He's had his critics since arriving at Goodison Park in January but Dele Alli changed the complexion of the game when he came on to help Everton secure Premier League safety.
The 26-year-old midfielder, who joined the Toffees from Spurs on Deadline Day in a deal that could cost up to £40million, replaced Andre Gomes as the second-half got underway – and he made a real impression from the off.
Alli was a real threat going forward throughout. In fact, we witnessed shades of his form from the 2016/17 campaign against Palace on Thursday night as he played a huge part in Richarlison's equaliser.
Alli received plenty of praise from social media after the biggest result in Everton's season. One fan said: "Dele Alli changed that game. Absolutely outstanding under intense pressure at 0-2 down," while another wrote: "Dele Alli changed the game. I don’t care how lazy he is in training, let him play Solitaire for all I care."
A third commented: "In big games, Big players turn up. Dele Alli did that. He’s a big game player."
Everton boss Frank Lampard is clearly a huge fan of the former England international and his faith paid off on Thursday night.
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Earlier this week, he urged Alli to keep fighting for his place in the team. Perhaps those words of encouragement made an impact against Crystal Palace.
When asked if he’d spoken to Alli about his future, Lampard said: “I have had those discussions with him, he’ll be very clear as to where I am and at the moment I’m much more concerned about the collective getting over the line as a group.
"If Dele plays his part in these three games then great and he steps up as he’s come on at times and done good things for us."
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It was a dramatic night at Goodison Park. The Toffees officially secured Premier League safety after coming back from 2-0 down against Crystal Palace to win 3-2.
Three second-half goals from Michael Keane, Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin helped Frank Lampard's reach that all-important 39-point mark.
Hundreds of fans ran onto the Goodison Park pitch in the moments after Calvert-Lewin's header.
And after holding on for seven agonising minutes of injury time, the Toffees managed to pick up the biggest three points of their season so far.
Topics: Everton, Crystal Palace, Premier League, Dele Alli
Jack Kenmare