With both sides fighting to avoid relegation, this match could’ve easily been a drab, goalless draw. Indeed, neither team walked away with all three points, but the six goals scored sure made it fun for the neutrals.
It was West Ham that took the lead before five minutes were up. After Chris Brunt hit the side netting, the Irons took advantage, sprinting up the pitch with a quick counter-attack. Kevin Nolan got on the end of a headed pass from Carlton Cole, and both Diego Lugano and Jonas Olsson focused their attention on Nolan. Joe Cole was able to slip through unnoticed and slice the ball into the bottom right corner.
But the hosts’ lead was canceled out by the halftime whistle, thanks to two goals from Nicolas Anelka. West Ham were caught out on a rare foray forward, with Brunt easily able to thread a ball through the defense to Anelka. The 34 year old had looked rather sluggish for much of the match, yet he was able to get behind Joey O’Brien to put in the equalizer.
Just five minutes later, just before the halftime whistle blew, Anelka had their second. This time it came courtesy of a corner that the Irons believed should never have been given. Carlton Cole was able to block a header from Olsson, but the ball fell to Anelka’s feet. The Frenchman had no difficulty turning it in from close range.
The second half brought more excitement than the first. Right from the start it was clear the visitors weren’t going to simply sit back and defend their lead, with Anelka forcing Jääskeläinen into a save just a few minutes after the restart. Minutes later, Saido Berahino went just wide with an angled drive.
Yet it was West Ham that got the next goal. Modibo Maiga, on for Carlton Cole at the break, forced Ben Foster into an acrobatic save in the 64th minute. But just a minute later, Foster’s error allowed Maiga to equalize for the Irons. Lugano could do nothing to stop Nolan, who easily breezed past the defender to tap over to Maiga. The forward’s shot seemed rather speculative, but Foster tried to push it away rather than simply blocking, and the ball wiggled through.
Barely two minutes later, the hosts put themselves in front once more. Kevin Nolan sent the ball over the Baggies defense to the far post, where Maiga lept to head down to Nolan. The West Ham captain slotted in from close range, putting his side ahead with his second goal of the season.
But West Ham’s defense were unable to prevent the visitors from scoring once more. After the third goal, Keith Downing changed up his formation by replacing Lugano with an attacker, Morgan Amalfitano. The change worked – just a minute later, the Baggies had their equalizer. Brunt had a hand in this one as well, setting free Berahino. The forward, who’d been excellent for much of the match, easily outstripped Guy Demel to put in West Brom’s third.
With a point helping neither side all that much, both pressed on for another goal. With less than ten minutes left to play, Berahino smacked his shot against the post, wasting an opportunity for West Brom to take all three points. Kevin Nolan very nearly got a second, but headed it over the bar instead.
West Ham United: Jääskeläinen, Raț, McCartney, Tomkins (Demel 10), O’Brien, Diamé , Noble, Jarvis, Nolan, J. Cole (Collison 83), C. Cole (Maiga 45)
Goals: J. Cole 4′; Maiga 64′; Nolan 67′
West Bromwich Albion: Foster; Jones, McAuley, Olsson, Lugano (Amalfitano 68), Ridgewell; Morrison (Yacob 78), Mulumbu, Brunt; Anelka, Berahino (Sessegnon 85)
Goals: Anelka 40 & 45′; Berahino 69′
