MX23RW : Saturday, November 23 03:42:30| >> :120:28404:28404:

Match Analysis: West Ham United 1-2 Everton

Match Analysis: West Ham 1-2 Everton
© PA Photos
Sports Mole dissects Everton's 2-1 win at West Ham United.

Everton have joined three other teams on 30 points in the upper reaches of the Premier League with a 2-1 win at West Ham United.

Second-half goals from Victor Anichebe and Steven Pienaar sealed the points for the Blues after Carlton Cole had put the hosts in front.

However, the game was overshadowed by controversy, with both sides reduced to 10 men under contentious circumstances and Leon Osman having a seemingly legitimate goal ruled offside.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look to see if the result was fair.

Match statistics

West Ham
Shots: 6
On Target: 5
Possession: 38%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 12

Everton
Shots: 15
On Target: 8
Possession: 62%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 8

Was the result fair?

Judging by the way both teams played across the 90 minutes, you could call this a fair result, but it's hard to say what the outcome would have been had Carlton Cole not been wrongfully dismissed in the second half.

West Ham's performance

The Hammers were excellent in the first half and deserved to be ahead at the break. The Everton defence had no answer to Cole's pace and strength and his red card proved the turning point. West Ham crumbled after that and spent much of the remainder on the back foot.

Everton's performance

The Toffees started slowly and appeared shell-shocked after falling behind, creating very little in the first period besides a disallowed Leon Osman goal that should have stood. They were much better after the break, even before Cole's dismissal they put West Ham under pressure, with Osman, Steven Pienaar and Leighton Baines running the show.

Referee's performance

Very poor indeed. While the decision to rule out Osman's seemingly-legitimate goal fell to the linesman, Anthony Taylor got both red card decisions spectacularly wrong. Cole was dismissed for going in with a raised boot on Baines, but there was no malice in the challenge whatsoever. It was the same story when Darron Gibson received his marching orders later on - a call that was likely made to compensate for the earlier gaff.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Leon Osman: Osman was a cut above the rest today and was the driving force behind Everton, linking up beautifully with Pienaar and Baines.

Biggest gaffe

That's an easy one - any of the calls made by the officials, take your pick.

What's next?

West Ham: The Hammers face a tough trip to Arsenal in their next figure as they bid to halt their slide down the table.

Everton: The Toffees play host to Wigan Athletic at Goodison Park on Boxing Day.

ID:60658: cacheID:60658:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4675:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Victor Anichebe celebrates netting the equaliser for Everton on December 22, 2012
Read Next:
Everton come from behind to win
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!