Lyon sends Everton crashing out of Europe
Everton's UEFA Europa League campaign came to a shuddering halt after a 3-0 loss to Lyon in France made it four Group E games without a win.
Everton crashed out of the UEFA Europa League after losing 3-0 to Lyon at Groupama Stadium on a night that probably couldn't have gone any worse for the Premier League side.
The Toffees were undone by a strike from former Chelsea man Bertrand Traore, who netted the winner in the reverse fixture at Goodison Park two weeks ago, and further goals from substitute Houssem Aouar and one-time Everton target Memphis Depay.
Caretaker boss David Unsworth admitted this week he would "probably" need to beat Lyon and Watford in the weekend's league game in order to have a chance of securing the job permanently, but his decision to field a makeshift line-up largely comprising youngsters and back-up players did not suggest confidence in his side's chances.
Lyon was the better team throughout and Everton would undoubtedly have been shaken towards the end of the first half when Cuco Martina was taken off on a stretcher after landing heavily on his back.
The visitors' resistance lasted until the 68th minute, when Traore capitalised on a loose ball in ruthless fashion, before Aouar's composed strike and Depay's header made the win safe for Lyon.
The Ligue 1 side needs only two points from its remaining two matches to book a place in the knockout phase, but Everton, which had Morgan Schneiderlin sent off in the closing stages, cannot progress to the next round because of Atalanta's 1-1 draw at Apollon Limassol.
Lyon controlled the opening minutes but Everton fashioned the first half-chance, with Gylfi Sigurdsson, starting as a false nine, snatching at a shot inside the area.
Jordan Pickford made the first good saves of the match in the 24th minute, keeping out a header from Traore before getting up quickly to tip away Nabil Fekir's effort on the rebound.
Depay stung Pickford's palms with a dipping free-kick before there was a lengthy stoppage in play to allow Martina to be treated, the full-back eventually being carried off in a neck brace after having fallen heavily when challenging for a header with Maxwel Cornet.
Lyon resumed its attacking intent during seven minutes of first-half stoppage-time, with Pickford keeping out a Depay drive from 20 yards after Marcelo had glanced a header wide, although Idrissa Gueye was denied by Anthony Lopes in the first minute of the second half when he should really have done better.
Sigurdsson flashed another effort wide but Lyon's breakthrough came at last midway through the second period. Schneiderlin challenged Tanguy NDombele and the ball broke through the static Everton defence and into the path of Traore, who took it around Pickford before slotting home.
A Sigurdsson free-kick had Lopes worried but Everton's hopes of a comeback were killed off with 14 minutes left. Mariano Diaz latched latched onto a long ball in the visitors' box and, after Pickford did well to save at his feet, Depay collected the rebound and cleverly teed up Aouar to curl a first-time finish into the bottom-right corner.
Schneiderlin earned a second yellow card for a needless lunge on Jordan Ferri before his former Manchester United team-mate Depay capped a fine outing for Lyon, the Netherlands international powering a header from Ferri's cross past Pickford, despite the keeper getting his hands to the ball.
It compounded another miserable European trip for Everton, which has won none of its four games and sits bottom of the group with two matches left to play.