A thumping 5-1 scoreline meant Everton exited the drop zone, leapfrogging both Leeds United and Leicester City into 16th place, in a massive statement at the most crucial time in the season.
The Toffees started sharply, opening the scoring through Abdoulaye Doucoure after just 33 minutes, with the midfielder adding a second in the second half.
Brighton’s woes were exacerbated when goalkeeper Jason Steele turned the ball into his own net and Dwight McNeil added another for Everton in the second half.
Alexis Mac Allister was able to claw one back for the home side, but the rout was firmly recorded when McNeil scored his second late in stoppage time.
Like their Merseyside rivals on Saturday, the away end largely spurned the call to commemorate the King’s coronation with the singing of the national anthem and attempted to drown it out with a rendition of Spirit of the Blues.
Those chants quickly turned to elated cheers when Dominic Calvert-Lewin collected the ball with his back to Brighton’s goal and – with a neat pivot – crossed to Doucoure at the far post, who obligingly tapped home.
Brighton worked a free-kick to Facundo Buonanotte on the right, but Jordan Pickford was alert to his nodded effort from a tight angle, picking it out of the air with little need for effort.
It was the visitors piling on the pressure at the 25-minute mark thanks to some fine work from Alex Iwobi, who collected the ball inside his own half and cooly controlled it in the final third, where Albion were eventually able to shut down the initial wave of attack.
Kaoru Mitoma tried to set up Danny Welbeck who could not make contact as he slid toward the Everton goal, while control once again began to feel like an elusive pursuit for the hosts, who found themselves at the mercy of Doucoure.
This time he latched onto McNeil’s cross from the left before volleying the ball past Steele to double Everton’s advantage on 29 minutes.
Brighton hoped that would be the end to their disastrous first half but McNeil had other ideas as he sent in a cross which Steele stooped forward to save, but instead further buried his side when the ball deflected in off the back of his leg.
Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi made four changes to start the second half including the introduction of Evan Ferguson, who was available for the first time after missing four matches with an ankle injury.
It was fellow substitute Solly March who first tested Pickford and lent the Seagulls a spark they had been…
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