Everton 1-1 West Ham VERDICT: How Nuno Espirito Santo stopped the rot, a fundamental flaw he must address soon – and the Toffees star who will be sweating over his starting spot
There was a standing ovation for Nuno Espirito Santo and rightly so after a positive first step. His first game as West Ham’s new head coach, following Graham Potter’s sacking, ended in a 1-1 draw at Everton but there was caution afterwards.
‘We have shown we can compete,’ said Nuno. ‘We have shown the basics for a football match. But this is just a small step. We have a lot of work to do.’
CALM THESE TROUBLED WATERS
It only took 30 seconds for Nuno to leap from his seat, put his hands on his hips. A concerned scratch of the head followed, the kind of which you tend to see from a mechanic just before they: ‘Yes, sir, your car has four wheels but the clutch has gone, the exhaust is blocked and the engine is ruined.’
Should he steer West Ham to a finishing position anything above 17th, Nuno might consider an alternative career as a magician because the problems at this club feel horribly deep-rooted and won’t be solved purely by hours at their Rush Green training base.
Plenty of diehards made this 420-mile round trip but they made sure Chairman David Sullivan knew what they thought of him in the 30th minute, then followed up with a prolonged chorus of “sack the board!” – this is the backdrop against which the season will be played out.
‘We have to bring the fans closer to us,’ Nuno observed.
Jarrod Bowen earned a point for West Ham during Nuno Espirito Santo’s first game in charge
Michael Keane fired the Toffees ahead with a superb header in the 18th minute of the match
Santo’s second-half changes did the business as he stopped the rot for the Irons with a draw
GET THE DEFENCE SORTED
When Everton took the lead in the 18th minute, the first thing Nuno did was look at the iPad perched in front of his dugout – then he grimaced. He had a look to his left, where club stalwart Mark Robson was sat assisting him and saw a tell-tale confirmation, as he re-enacted a heading motion.
In other words, it was another sign of aerial vulnerability. High balls into the West Ham area this season have had the effect of ice cubs being thrown onto a roaring fire: the defenders have tended to instantly melt and so it proved again.
Nuno, a man who prides himself on defensive resilience, simply won’t tolerate this trend continuing. Michael Keane couldn’t believe how much space he had been afforded to run onto James Garner’s precise cross and the anticipation was that Everton would ram home their dominance.
BLUNT BLUES
Moyes took umbrage to a question at his weekly press conference last Friday that his forwards haven’t fired as he would want them. He swiftly responded that Beto had scored two goals already and insisted the man from Guinea-Bissau – and rookie Thierno Barry – were ‘doing fine’.
Fine is, well, fine but Everton need ruthlessness. Beto, a hugely popular figure in the dressing room, had a fabulous chance to cement Everton’s early dominance but the timing of his jump for a James Tarkowski cross was off and his header had no power. It was one of many let-offs.
The home crowd’s frustrations were obvious – and noisy. They knew West Ham should have been cut to ribbons and the growls at the final whistle, exacerbated by a booking for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall that triggers a one-game ban, signified an opportunity missed.
Striker Beto needs to do be better than ‘fine’ if Everton are going to put teams to bed this term
West Ham conceded from a header once again – one of their key issues so far this campaign
Graham Potter was sacked by West Ham on Saturday after winning just one game from five
BOWEN AGAIN, OLE, OLE!
A penny for Moyes’s thoughts when he saw the ball drop to Bowen, in oceans of space, in the 64th minute. He took the chance on a young man from Hull in January 2020, filled him with belief and was paid back when with the goal, in June 2023, that secured the club its first trophy since 1980.
Bowen is the twinkling jewel in the sand for West Ham. There are other talented players but their captain ticks every box you could want: attitude, skill, honesty and, above all, quality. When he seized onto a loose ball, there was a sense of inevitability about what would follow.
His finish was thumping, ripping past Jordan Pickford with a deflection off Keane. Bowen would get in most teams in the Premier League every week.
A BUILDING BLOCK
Things aren’t about to get any easier for Nuno, with a trip to Arsenal on Saturday. That was one of Potter’s few great days, when he oversaw a win at The Emirates in February but it would be an even greater surprise if they achieved a similar result now.
Still, this was a start, a positive strand to cling to at a time when there has been untold turbulence. There will be more to come in the future – isn’t it always the case with West Ham? – but, for now, the scoreboard is ticking over. It needs to remain that way.
