Struggling West Ham and Everton play out drab goalless draw
Julen Lopetegui and Sean Dyche greeted each other with smiles on the touchline prior to kick-off, perhaps masking the pressure they were each facing following underwhelming starts to their respective campaigns.
Both managers had come under fire following poor results last weekend and neither set of fans would’ve taken much inspiration from a scrappy opening that was scarce of quality.
Murmurs of discontent grew from the Hammers faithful as the hosts struggled to muster any meaningful patterns of play.
An early Everton counter that was negated by a well-timed challenge from Crysencio Summerville was the closest either side came until West Ham briefly began to stir on the stroke of HT.
Jarrod Bowen forced Jordan Pickford to turn a near-post effort around the upright on the stroke of HT, before his threaded ball to Michail Antonio was at too wide an angle to get a clear sight at goal.
The stalemate extended well into the second half. Pickford was left relieved when Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite deflected Bowen’s strike wide, whilst at the other end, Jesper Lindstrøm’s header forced Lukasz Fabianski to tip over the West Ham bar.
The Toffees were saved by the woodwork when Lucas Paquetá punched through the Everton defence with an exquisite pass from midfield that found Summerville, who controlled superbly but his angled finish came back off the post.
Substitute Danny Ings threatened to snatch all three points for the Hamers as he was twice denied by an impenetrable Pickford. First, the Toffees stopper reacted sharply to a curling left-footed finish before turning over Ings’s thunderous drive deep in added time, as Everton stubbornly claimed a point much to the home crowd’s frustrations.
And whilst a point might not be enough to relieve the pressure off Lopetegui, an illusive clean sheet for West Ham brings an end to their worst-ever Premier League run of conceding (14 home league matches).
Flashscore Man of the Match: Crysencio Summerville (West Ham United)
