West Ham United's Michail Antonio heads at goal during the Premier League match at Goodison Park, Liverpool. Picture date: Sunday September 18, 2022.
Everton 1-0 West Ham
by James Nalton
at Goodison
EVERTON claimed their first win of the season against West Ham on Sunday thanks to Neal Maupay’s first goal for the club.
It was a much-needed three points for manager Frank Lampard, whose Everton side had been promising at the start of the season and made some useful moves in the transfer market but, prior to this game, had not converted this into a win.
The winning goal was a brilliantly executed finish from one of those summer signings, Maupay, who received a pass from the impressive Alex Iwobi before setting himself up with an ideal first touch to fire a shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.
“The first touch is always the key,” Maupay told Sky Sports after the game. “If you get a good first touch, it makes the finish easier.”
It wasn’t a big chance, but he turned it into a good one with that touch, which lifted the ball up slightly, allowing for a clean strike when combined with an instinctive turn.
The French striker, who arrived from Brighton & Hove Albion towards the end of the transfer window, caused West Ham problems throughout the game, initially with some high pressing as the visitors tried to play the ball out from the back.
Maupay may not offer the size and presence of Everton’s other centre-forwards, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Salomon Rondon, but he brings a different kind of physicality that includes a quickness when closing down the opposition.
An early chance fell to Everton via this route. Maupay won possession after some poor passing between Kurt Zouma and Tomas Soucek under pressure, and played a ball through to Iwobi. The midfielder's touch let him down, though, and the ball eventually rolled harmlessly out of play.
Maupay could have had another and was inches away from connecting with a Demarai Gray cross 10 minutes after he had given Everton the lead in the second half.
In fact there were a few decent opportunities in attack, but Everton were unable to turn them into shots on goal.
On another day they might have paid the price for not being more clinical.
The captain’s emotional performance in Argentina’s win over Venezuela had all the markings of a farewell. But if history is any guide, the legend may not be done just yet, writes JAMES NALTON
As football grapples with overloaded calendars and commercial pressure, the Mariners’ triumph reminds us why the game’s soul lives far from the spotlight, writes JAMES NALTON
JAMES NALTON takes a look at the German league’s move to grow its audience in Britain, and around the future of football on TV in general
