In the end, David Moyes’ final game at Goodison Park in charge of Everton encapsulated the very best of his 11 years at the club. A commanding, incisive and genuinely joyful display saw the Toffees run out 2-0 winners against an admittedly abject West Ham, with Kevin Mirallas scoring once in each half to send off our departing boss in style.

Though in reality there was little riding on today’s result, the win, along with Tottenham’s victory over Stoke sees Everton’s 6th place finish confirmed – the team’s highest since 2009 – and means that they will finish above Liverpool in consecutive seasons for the first time since the mid-1930s.

Below are some of the major tactical points I took from the game.

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Productive domination.

With 64.7% of the ball, Everton were allowed more possession today than in any other Premier League game this season, bar the 3-3 draw with Aston Villa in February. What was significant here however, was the extent to which the Blues exploited their superiority on the ball, with Baines and Coleman continually overloading the flanks to grant a numerical advantage, and combining with the three attacking midfielders on a number of occasions to set up Osman, Anichebe and Mirallas. But for the efforts of Jussi Jaaskelainen and James Collins, who made 6 blocks, there score could have been much greater.

A telling comparison that demonstrates the potency of Everton’s attack today is to look at the game next to the loss at Sunderland in April. Then, the possession stats were similar, with Everton enjoying 63.6% of the ball, but where they made only 11 attempts at the Stadium of Light (of which just 2 were on target), they managed 28 at Goodison, with 7 on target.

Indeed, the domination extended throughout the team, with Distin and Jagielka effectively shackling Andy Carroll, and Gibson and Fellaini ably supporting the forwards in the attacking third, whilst West Ham’s inability to support Carroll and Kevin Nolan left them largely bereft of any attacking threat.

Mirallas, Pienaar and Osman wreak havoc between the lines.

The interchanging of Everton’s attacking midfield trio continually stretched West Ham’s defence, and combined with the support of Baines and Coleman on the wings, and the pressing of Fellaini and Gibson, the Hammers’ central midfield partnership of Gary O’Neil and Mohamed Diame were overrun in first half – unable to link with Nolan and Carroll, and often caught the wrong side of Osman, Mirallas, and Pienaar in particular.

This state of affairs was compounded when, at half time, Sam Allardyce inexplicably withdrew Diame in favour of Carlton Cole, ostensibly switching to a straight 4-4-2, but in actuality leaving his defence with even less protection, as Kevin Nolan remained largely in his more advanced position.

In the absence of any real pressure from the West Ham midfield, Everton’s forward line continued to flourish. The Toffees’ performances often correlate with the influence that Steven Pienaar has on the game, and his 8 chances created today represented the highest return by a single player in the league so far this week. His enterprise set up Mirallas for his first goal, and the Belgian’s incisive play and willingness to shoot saw him grab a second via a deflection off Collins, in addition to leading the game in attempts.

Gibson orchestrates from the base of midfield.

Darron Gibson gave one of his finest performances of the season, playing positionally alongside Marouane Fellaini deep in Everton’s midfield, but contributing significantly to the side’s attacking endeavours – once again thanks in part to the lack of pressure from West Ham’s own central midfielders. Gibson completed 92% of his 88 passes – a match high – 33 of which were in the attacking third.

His direct forward passing, along with Mirallas’ pace, have been refreshing this season in a side that has too often been slow to break, and his assist for the Belgian forward in the second half, one of two chances Gibson created, exemplified the variation that he brings to the Blues’ play.

Overall, a classy, energetic and entertaining performance to end the Moyes era at Goodison, helped by a particularly sub-standard West Ham side and some poor Allardyce subs. There could, and should, have been more goals, but otherwise there was little to fault – a far cry from the last time the club were forced into a managerial change.

Man of the Match: Darron Gibson