Soccer
Relegation fight leads to goal-fest victories from Everton and Nottingham Forest
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Everton and Nottingham Forest aren't going down without a fight.
The teams entered Monday's Premier League action mired in the bottom three and looking likely to drop when the season ends later this month. And while one or both sides may ultimately end up being relegated when all is said and done, they both gave their respective battles for survival a shot in the arm with goal-heavy victories on Monday.
The Toffees got things started as they scored early and often in a 5-1 win at Brighton. Everton got on the board in the very first minute through Abdoulaye Doucouré and didn't look back, building up a 4-0 lead before Brighton got one back in the 79th minute. Everton restored the four-goal lead for good deep into stoppage time as Dwight McNeil completed his second-half brace to join Doucouré as two-goal scorers on the day.
The victory pushed Everton out of the drop zone and into 16th place, but only for a few hours as Forest came through with a high-scoring victory of their own with bumped the Toffees down to 17th.
Forest's 4-3 win was not nearly as comfortable, however. They hosted fellow relegation candidate Southampton, with both sides looking at Monday's match as a prime opportunity to pick up a much-needed three points.
The home side appeared to be cruising to victory after Taiwo Awoniyi struck twice within the 21 minutes to give Forest an early two-goal lead. Carlos Alcaraz answered for the visitors, cutting the lead in half on 24 minutes, only for Forest to restore the two-goal advantage at the stroke of halftime.
The teams then took turns scoring in the second half, as Lyanco struck for the Saints in the 51st minute, followed by Danilo's 73rd-minute strike for Forest. It took until stoppage time for the game to see another goal, as James Ward-Prowse slotted home a penalty to pull Southampton to within a goal. That actually followed a Forest goal that was ruled offside by VAR as stoppage time began, leading to a nervy and lengthy stretch for the home side until the final whistle was blown.
Both Everton and Forest have a tough remainder of the season ahead, with the Toffees facing Manchester City (home), Wolves (away) and Bournemouth (home) while Forest take on Chelsea (away), Arsenal (home) and Crystal Palace (away).
