Showing posts with label Tim Cahill. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tim Cahill. Show all posts
West Bromwich Albion stunned Everton with a 4-1 at Goodison Park that saw both teams reduced to 10 men.
Paul Scharner's header and Chris Brunt's wonder free-kick gave West Brom an unlikely first-half advantage before Tim Cahill's eighth goal of the season halved the deficit just before the break.
In the second-half Everton saw captain Mikel Arteta sent off before West Brom scored two goals to seal victory.
Youssouf Mulumbu was also dismissed in the dying minutes but the Baggies were not to be denied.
The win sees Roberto Martinez's climb to 11th in the table, while Everton are now just two points from the relegation places.
Everton had the first chance of the game and it fell to Victor Anichebe, playing his first game of the season.
Tim Cahill fed the striker on the right wing. He stepped inside Marek Cech before sending a swerving, left-footed effort towards the far corner.
But Scott Carson stuck out a right hand to divert the ball away to safety.
West Brom opened the scoring against the run of play after 16 minutes when Chris Brunt, who passed a late fitness test, curled an out-swinging corner to the near post.
Phil Jagielka looked to have it covered but he reckoned without Paul Scharner, and the charging Austrian got to the ball first and buried his header from six yards out past Tim Howard, who had no chance.
Everton almost drew level seven minutes later when Mikel Arteta's arching 20-yard free-kick was expertly tipped away by Carson at full stretch.
Barely 90 seconds later West Brom had doubled their lead with a wonderful free-kick.
Cahill fouled Youssouf Mulumbu 25 yards out in a central position, and Chris Brunt stepped up to whip a tremendous shot into the top right corner that left Howard grasping for mid-air.
Four minutes before the break Everton were back in the game through a familiar source.
Yakubu won a corner on the left which was delivered by Leighton Baines to the edge of the goal area, where Cahill leapt above Gabriel Tamas to score his eighth goal of the season with a thumping header past Carson.
Substitute Jermaine Beckford looked to have hauled Everton level 10 minutes after the restart but Gabriel Tamas performed heroics with an overhead kick off the line.
Just before the hour the real drama of the afternoon unfolded when Gonzalo Jara made a reckless lunge at Arteta near halfway.
The Spaniard appeared to stamp on the Chilean defender and referee Lee Mason immediately showed the Everton captain a red card.
West Brom sensed their opportunity and pushed forward at every chance.
Beckford's blazing volley from eight yards out that threatened to clear Goodison Park summed up the afternoon for David Moyes' team.
West Brom made sure of victory with two fine strikes in the final 15 minutes.
First, substitute Somen Tchoyi cut inside on the left of penalty area before dispatching a right-footed effort into the far corner.
Then, with time running out, Mulumbu exchanged passes with James Morrison before firing low past Howard to send Baggies' fans into a frenzy.
Mulumbu received a caution for his celebration and was dismissed just 30 seconds later following a soft foul on Steven Pienaar.
But nothing could dampen West Brom's day as their inflicted yet another home defeat on one of the Premier League's big boys.
Everton visit Chelsea in their next league game while West Brom host Newcastle United.
Ayegbeni Yakubu's 67th minute strike was enough for Everton to see off a resilient Stoke City side 1-0 in the Premier League at Goodison Park.
The ball fell to the Nigerian striker after a 20-yard Tim Cahill strike smacked the foot of Asmir Begovic's left post. Showing a good level of composure, Yakubu proceeded to cut inside before unleashing an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net from six yards out.
The game itself was a largely scrappy affair, with Stoke seeking to stifle the progress of their opponents at every given opportunity.
Robert Huth, Abdoulaye Faye and Ryan Shawcross were pillars at the back for Tony Pulis' men. So much so, in fact, that the relief around Goodison was clear for all to see following Yakubu's strike.
Up until then, The Toffees' midfield trio of Cahill, Steven Pienaar and Mikel Arteta had been restricted to tame long-range efforts at the Stoke goal. This, despite the fact that Leighton Baines and Phil Neville had been given license to roam and attack deep down both flanks, as Stoke looked to pack players into the middle of the pitch.
First, Pienaar striked from a central position in the 25th minute, which Asmir Begovic was able to gather cleanly while moving to his right. Then, eight minutes later, Cahill attempted something similar from around 35 yards out with his drive flying high and wide of goal.
It was testament to Stoke's resilience, as Tony Pulis' men - particularly in the first half - restricted The Toffees by congesting the midfield and getting, at times, nine men behind the ball with Kenwyne Jones positioned as the lone target man, designed to latch onto any long balls from the back.
As the frustration of Everton, and the Goodison Park faithful, began to grow, Stoke slowly gathered momentum and arguably had the better of the chances before half-time.
A mix-up in The Toffees defence inside the first ten minutes presented Jones with a turn and strike on goal. However, the Trinidad and Tobagan didn't catch the ball cleanly and sliced his effort beyond Tim Howard's posts.
Then, moments before half-time, a whipped Matthew Etherington delivery came through a host of Everton players to Abdoulaye Faye arriving at the back post. However, the Senegalese defender's surprise at being presented with the opportunity was clear for all to see as he dragged his shot wide of goal.
Into the second-half, and it was again Everton who looked the more nervous of the two teams, with Sanli Tuncay having a goal harshly disallowed on the hour-mark, after being accused of pushing Baines when converting a Huth knock-down.
That, however, seemed to spur Everton into life and, following Yakubu's moment of glory, David Moyes' men initially began to get into their stride.







