Hammers off the mark to give boss perfect birthday
THIS first defeat of the season for Everton was all the more frustrating for them given the identity of the man who scored two of West Ham United’s goals.
Twice in the past Everton have attempted to sign Andriy Yarmolenko but, in a £17.5m summer move, the Ukrainian winger eventually joined West Ham and here was an immediate return on his Premier League debut.
It meant that on his 65th birthday Manuel Pellegrini avoided a landmark he definitely did not want.
If he had lost this game he would have become the first Hammers manager in the club’s history to record five successive league defeats at the start of a campaign.
Little wonder that he exclaimed afterwards: “The cake was the three points.”
The only downside for West Ham, apart from an injury to Marko Arnautovic, were claims that striker Lucas Perez, one of their nine new signings, had refused to warm up during the second-half.
The points lifted West Ham not just off the bottom of the table but out of the relegation places. Crisis over?
Disjointed
For Everton manager Marco Silva this was a desperately disappointing, disjointed performance. There is mitigation that injuries and suspensions – as he was denied his main signing Richarlison – have hit hard, but Everton’s season is yet to get going.
West Ham will hope this is their springboard with Yarmolenko, who Everton tried to recruit in 2015 and again last year before he joined Borussia Dortmund, providing a greater goal threat along with Arnautovic, who also scored and led the line well.
Even so West Ham’s most impressive performer was probably Declan Rice, with the teenager who has come under such scrutiny in recent weeks over his international status stationed in midfield.
Such was his calm, confident contribution that captain Mark Noble handed him the armband when he was substituted before it made its way to Pablo Zabaleta.
It had been a poor first-half from Everton – and was not much better after that – with Silva showing his unhappiness by not even waiting until the break to make a change.
On 44 minutes he introduced Bernard for his home debut, taking off the ineffective Morgan Schneiderlin, and changing his team’s shape to match up with West Ham’s 4-3-3.
It was tough for Schneiderlin, whose father died last week, as had been mentioned by Silva in his programme notes.
The switch provided an early dividend with his team scoring with the last touch of the half as Gylfi Sigurdsson powered in a header. The ball was played out wide to Jonjoe Kenny on the right, an enforced change with Irish captain Seamus Coleman injured, and he stood up a cross which the Icelander attacked to beat Lukasz Fabianski.
How Everton needed that. How they had suffered until then as West Ham had capitalised on their defensive frailty with Yarmolenko’s goals. They were carved open with Kurt Zouma, in particular, culpable.
On 11 minutes Fabian Balbuena intercepted before Pedro Obiang simply lofted the ball through to Arnautovic, who had held his run to stay onside.
The striker chested the ball down and ran on before selflessly squaring to Yarmolenko who side-footed into the net with ease.
West Ham stuck again – although before that Cenk Tosun should have equalised only to steer his tame header straight at Fabianski – and once more Everton could only blame themselves.
The ball was not cleared by goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and, although Noble was fouled, referee Martin Atkinson played on with possession breaking to Yarmolenko who was allowed to cut in on his left foot to curl the ball beyond Pickford’s reach and into the net.
Both Zouma and Lucas Digne stood off the winger giving him all the time and space he needed.
Bernard briefly showed his trickery – drawing bookings for Yarmolenko and Pablo Zabaleta – even if the first real chance of the second-half fell to West Ham with Obiang firing wastefully over.
The midfielder though was then heavily involved as the visitors restored their two-goal advantage with a brilliantly-worked goal that once more opened up Everton.
Noble played the ball infield to Obiang who pushed it on to Arnautovic who swiftly returned the ball.
The Austrian then moved into the penalty area and was again picked out by Obiang, before sliding his shot low past Pickford.
It was, unfortunately, Arnautovic’s last involvement as he had to depart injured.
Substitute Oumar Niasse should have set up a tense finish when he met Digne’s cross – only to volley powerfully against the crossbar. (© Daily Telegraph, London)