For a moment, it was just like old times. Leighton Baines flicked his left foot that still resembles a magic wand and Phil Jagielka rose powerfully to glance in a header.
The day Everton had been waiting for — the grand opening of their £750million riverfront stadium — was understandably full of nods to the past, so there was just as much interest in the legends game with AS Roma as the main event between the two current teams.
It raised a smile to see Jagielka attempting a cartwheel after scoring but there is no longer any need to look back at how things used to be: Hill Dickinson Stadium, on the site of the old Bramley- Moore Dock, has been a long time coming and the importance of the day could not be overstated.