West Ham 2-0 Everton: Player ratings as Hammers beat Toffees in relegation six-pointer
By Sean Walsh
West Ham United eased the pressure on David Moyes with a 2-0 win at home to relegation rivals Everton on Saturday.
Frank Lampard's men remain mired in the bottom three and will sink to the foot of the Premier League table if Southampton take a least a point from their delayed 3pm matchup with Aston Villa.
London Stadium was understandably nervy in all corners in the opening stages, with Everton nearly punished by Jarrod Bowen for playing too loosely from the back, but Jordan Pickford was able to clear for the visitors just in time.
Everton wanted a penalty when the ball struck Angelo Ogbonna's arm in the penalty area, but their appeals were dismissed following a VAR check.
The hosts were struggling to find a clear route to goal early on, with Said Benrahma forcing Pickford into a one-handed save with a thumping strike from distance midway through the first half.
But West Ham managed to notch themselves in front with their first big chance of the game. A cross from Emerson was nodded on by Kurt Zouma and England forward Bowen was on hand to tap in, and the goal was allowed to stand after a lengthy VAR check for offside.
The Hammers should have had a second soon after when Michail Antonio opted to head another beautifully weighted cross from Emerson back across goal instead of towards it with the net gaping.
It wasn't too long before West Ham doubled their lead, however. Bowen led a counter and set Antonio racing clear down the byline past James Tarkowski, and the Jamaican returned the favour with a cross for the number 20 to tap in from close range once more.
On the stroke of half-time, Alex Iwobi's strike from 12 yards deflected off Declan Rice and hit the post as Everton looked to mount an improbable comeback.
At the start of the second half, Dominic Calvert-Lewin twice came inches away from meeting deep crosses into the West Ham box but was unable to get a telling touch on either of them.
The visitors were finally starting to click into gear as Idrissa Gueye had a 25-yard strike beaten away by Lukasz Fabianski.
At the other end, Emerson's strike was diverted onto the crossbar by Pickford at the end of a swift breakaway, while Nayef Aguerd headed narrowly over from the resulting corner.
Declan Rice managed to drive forward from midfield and poke a shot at goal from the edge of the six-yard box, but his effort trickled just wide.
The sizeable travelling contingent chanted 'sack the board' - applauded by their hosts - as the clock ran down and West Ham secured three valuable points to climb out of the relegation zone.
West Ham player ratings
GK: Lukasz Fabianski (5); CB: Kurt Zouma (7), CB: Angelo Ogbonna (7), CB: Nayef Aguerd (7); RM: Vladimir Coufal (5), CM: Declan Rice (6), CM: Lucas Paqueta (6), LM: Emerson (7); RF: Jarrod Bowen (9), LF: Said Benrahma (6); CF: Michail Antonio (8)
Subs: Danny Ings (5), Tomas Soucek (5), Flynn Downes (N/A), Ben Johnson (N/A)
Manager: David Moyes - 7/10
Everton player ratings
GK: Jordan Pickford (6); CB: Yerry Mina (5), CB: Conor Coady (5), CB: James Tarkowski (3); RM: Seamus Coleman (4), CM: Amadou Onana (5), CM: Idrissa Gueye (4), CM: Alex Iwobi (6), LM: Vitaliy Mykolenko (4); CF: Demarai Gray (5), CF: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (4)
Subs: Dwight McNeil (5), Tom Davies (5)
Manager: Frank Lampard - 4/10