West Ham grabs 2 stoppage-time goals to win after Beto scores and misses penalty for Everton
LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — West Ham scored twice in stoppage time to come from behind for a win at Goodison Park as a mixed afternoon for Everton striker Beto ended in a 3-1 defeat in the English Premier League on Saturday.
The Portuguese forward’s redemptive goal after missing Everton’s first penalty of the season put his side ahead in the 56th minute but his joy was short-lived.
Kurt Zouma equalized six minutes later and then a goal by Tomas Soucek, with a brilliant outside-of-the-foot strike in the first minute of injury time, was followed by Edson Alvarez’s breakaway strike.
The loss extended Everton’s winless run to 10 matches. A week which began with news of the Toffees’ 10-point deduction being reduced to six — lifting them away from the relegation zone — ended with more recriminations and questions.
Everton manager Sean Dyche’s decision to drop striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin after 20 games without a goal looked understandable. However, when Beto missed two good early chances and had his penalty saved by Alphonse Areola, it started to look like a gamble gone wrong.
To say the start to his Everton career following his summer move from Udinese has been underwhelming is something of an understatement.
Despite a goal on debut against fourth-tier Doncaster in the English League Cup in August, Beto was making only his sixth Premier League start. While he has scored more recently than Calvert-Lewin — albeit three months ago — one league goal in 21 previous appearances has been a dismal return.
However, the Portuguese did head home James Garner’s hanging cross for the opener, responding after his decision to step up for the penalty had been greeted with some disquiet.
Dwight McNeil should have doubled Everton’s lead from Jack Harrison’s square pass but Areola kept his close-range shot out and the hosts paid for that as Zouma, who spent a season on loan at Everton, nodded in James Ward-Prowse’s corner.
The game opened up and that favored the visitors.
Soucek finished Mohammed Kudus’ cross before Alvarez punished Everton further with an even later counterattack.
West Ham recorded only its second win in eight away games to move into seventh place.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer