Hammers Unlucky on Merseyside

If ever there was a team in a false position in the Premiership table, that team is West Ham United. But Alan Pardew’s side can take considerable encouragement from their performance at Goodison Park, even though in the end it was Everton who came away with all three points.

In a game dominated by blustery winds, the Hammers had by far the better of the first half, in which they won a succession of corners and constantly threatened without being able to turn their superiority into goals, and even after the interval when the conditions were no longer quite so favourable they continued to look dangerous.

Ultimately, they paid the price for missing chances and for two lapses in defence – the first when a poor clearance gave Osman the opportunity to volley past Robert Green and the second when young substitute Vaughan wasn’t closed down quickly enough and produced a goal in injury time.

In the end, the score flattered Everton because for long periods, West Ham had looked more likely winners and in Carlos Tevez they had arguably the outstanding performer on the pitch.