Crystal Palace v Everton: Eagles remain unbeaten under Hodgson after drab draw
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Dominic Calvert-Lewin, making his first appearance in over two months, missed a good opportunity to give Everton the lead in the second half
Crystal Palace edged closer to Premier League survival with a drab goalless draw against Everton, who finished the game with 10 men and drop into the bottom three.
Palace were the more cohesive side in the first half without managing to carve out any clear openings, Michael Olise's tame shot their only effort on target before the interval.
Everton grew into the game after a disjointed start, their best chance of the first half coming when Alex Iwobi's first-time effort from Tyrick Mitchell's clearance was pushed away by Palace goalkeeper Sam Johnstone.
Eberechi Eze thought he had broken the deadlock early in the second half after lifting the ball over Jordan Pickford, but the 24-year-old was denied a fourth goal in three games by an offside flag.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, making his first start since early February, fired narrowly wide not long afterwards, before Mason Holgate was dismissed for a second bookable offence late on.
Everton drop to 18th after being overtaken by Leicester following the Foxes' 2-1 win at home to Wolves.
"We can't keep staring at the table," Sean Dyche told BBC Match of the Day. "We have to take control of our situation and of what we're doing.
"We had moments today, but we need more moments. There's no lack of commitment, it's the details in our performances that need to improve."
Toffees into bottom three despite point
Sean Dyche says he is pleased with the draw
Everton have now gone five games without victory and with a tricky run of fixtures on the horizon, the Toffees' place in the top flight is under serious threat.
They were boosted by the return of Calvert-Lewin, who made his first appearance in more than two months after recovering from a hamstring injury, but the striker was left isolated for the majority of the first half.
Dyche's team were poor in possession to begin with but improved as the first half wore on, Iwobi forcing a fine save out of Johnstone with a sweetly struck volley from around 25 yards.
Calvert-Lewin did go close to firing Everton ahead in the second half, but his left-footed shot from Iwobi's pass rolled agonisingly wide of Johnstone's left-hand post.
"It was great to get Dom through - he played more minutes than we thought," Dyche said of the striker, who was replaced by Neal Maupay in second-half stoppage time. "He did well, so a mixed bag with a clean sheet against the in-form team in the division.
"The first half was a flat game, in the second we reacted a bit better. The fight is there, the work ethic and the shape of the team was pretty good, and we limited them to a few chances."
Holgate, however, endured a particularly torrid afternoon against the lively Jordan Ayew and was sent off with 10 minutes remaining after clipping the Ghanaian's heels.
The Toffees have now failed to win any of their past 14 away matches in all competitions - their worst run on the road in over 42 years.
After welcoming high-flying Newcastle to Goodison Park on Thursday, Dyche's team travel to fellow strugglers Leicester on 1 May in a crucial encounter near the foot of the table.
No way through for Palace
Roy Hodgson says his side's game with Everton as tough as expected
After flirting with relegation for the past few months, Palace can surely start planning for an 11th successive top-flight campaign after stretching their unbeaten start to life under Roy Hodgson to four matches.
The Eagles - who had won their past three games before Saturday - move on to 37 points, nine clear of the bottom three with just six games of the season remaining.
Olise's tame effort was the closest Palace came to a breakthrough before half-time, but they had the better opportunities in the second half and looked the likeliest to find a winner in the latter stages.
Eze produced a confident finish from Marc Guehi's lofted pass but was clearly offside, before testing Pickford with a curling effort from the corner of the area.
Second-half substitute Luka Milivojevic had a rasping shot deflected narrowly wide, but Palace were unable to press home their numerical advantage after Holgate's dismissal.
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