Everton 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 1: match report

17 October 2009 17:29
All but the most optimistic Wolverhampton Wanderers fans had come to Goodison Park hoping that their side would at least make it look competitive against an Everton team who have had all that confidence - lost at the start of the season - steadily seep back into them in recent weeks. Those same supporters will have travelled back down the M6 feeling sick to the stomach with a 1-1 draw, a last-gasp equaliser from Diniyar Bilyaletdinov denying them what would have been a wonderful win. David Moyes had said before this match that his Everton side were perking up. Yet it didn’t look that way, and it wasn’t long before Wolves started believing as though they could spring a surprise here and not only avoid another defeat, but actually go and win the match. Boosted by the return of Sylvan Ebanks-Blake up front and Michael Kightly on the right wing, Mick McCarthy’s side badgered their opposition into apathy, and Goodison Park, though crammed, was unusually quiet. You could almost hear McCarthy barking out his orders. There was some action in the first half, but not a lot: Tim Cahill shot over, Christophe Berra had a decent first-time effort saved, Tim Howard saved with one hand from Kevin Doyle and Ebanks-Blake shot wide from six yards. The second half was more lively. Howard got the better of Ebanks-Blake with 25 minutes to go and seconds later it was Yakubu at the other end, pulling his shot across goal. Groans from the home support rumbled across the ground: they knew, as the Everton striker did, that he should have done better. Moyes removed Louis Saha, looking to his blue-booted Brazilian, Jo, for inspiration. McCarthy, also looking for a new dimension, was about to bring on Stefan Maierhofer. But as the 6ft 7½in Austrian striker hovered on the sidelines, Doyle found his way through, the Everton back four left stranded by the simplest of looped balls from Wayne Hennessy. Route one at its most basic - and effective. All Doyle needed to do was stick out his right boot, and he duly tucked the ball past Howard into the corner. Maierhofer came on, but he was soon off again after collecting two yellow cards. In normal circumstances McCarthy might have reached a state of Supernova. As it was he was still in shock. Cahill had found Jo on the left, and the Brazilian’s ball across the face of goal was tapped in at the far post by Bilyaletdinov – his first goal for the club. At last Goodison had something to grin about.

Source: Telegraph