Earlier in the season there would have been no coming back from such a crushing blow. It would have been the start of a vintage West Ham collapse. Another disappointment for the home support to absorb, another lead lost, another squandered advantage inching Nuno Esp\u00edrito Santo\u2019s side towards the Championship.<\/p>\n
Two minutes of the 90 remained when Vitalii Myolenko crossed, James Tarkowski won the first header and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall lashed Everton<\/a> level. Say farewell to the lifeline.<\/p>\n West Ham had just enjoyed an almighty escape, the officials somehow failing to award a penalty for a blatant handball by Mateus Fernandes. But when their luck ran out and Dewsbury-Hall scored with Everton\u2019s next attack it seemed that the story was going to be about Nuno\u2019s caution backfiring and West Ham losing ground in their shootout for survival with Tottenham, who had finally found a way<\/a> past Wolves at Molineux.<\/p>\n At that point West Ham were sliding back into the bottom three with games against Brentford, Arsenal, Newcastle and Leeds to come. Four minutes later, though, another shift. They were into the second of eight added minutes and Callum Wilson, who had entered the fray with West Ham clinging on to their 1-0 lead, had done what he tends to do against Everton: score.<\/p>\n Wilson\u2019s ninth goal in his past eight appearances against Everton kept Tottenham in 18th place and West Ham two points above them. Stoppage-time interventions are proving crucial. Last week, it was Georginio Rutter shattering Tottenham<\/a> in their draw with Brighton. This time it was Wilson capitalising on good work from Jarrod Bowen \u2013 and it was worth remembering that it was the veteran striker who kickstarted West Ham\u2019s unlikely revival by scoring a last-minute winner at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium<\/a> in January.<\/p>\n \u201cThe next move is to play forward and get a goal,\u201d Nuno said of his side\u2019s response to Everton\u2019s equaliser. \u201cThis is character. It makes us proud.\u201d<\/p>\n In scoring against Everton once again, Callum Wilson (L) ensured West Ham stayed out of the relegation zone. Photograph: Tom Jenkins\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Nuno has recovered from a poor start to his time at West Ham. He has changed the mood since the turn of the year, instilling heart and desire. This was far from a flawless performance \u2014 West Ham were nervous during the first half and too quick to drop back after opening the scoring \u2014 but the grit was reminiscent of how they were during David Moyes\u2019 two spells.<\/p>\n The one consolation for Moyes is that defeat in the 750th Premier League<\/a> game of his managerial career, on his 63rd birthday, owed much to contributions from two of his best signings for West Ham.<\/p>\n The Hammers were struggling before Bowen and Tomas Soucek joined them in January 2020. Six years on, both are still going strong. They have shown leadership during a fraught campaign and their importance was clear here, not least when Bowen swung in a corner for Soucek to punish Everton\u2019s growing frailties at set-pieces and make it 1-0 in the 51st minute.<\/p>\n They are West Ham\u2019s reliables. Theirs is the club\u2019s most effective partnership in Premier League history, with Bowen setting up 10 of Soucek\u2019s league goals. However their importance cannot be measured by goals alone. Captain Bowen ran himself into the ground again but still found the energy to set up Wilson. Soucek, meanwhile, is one of the least flashy players around, but never stops trying, is a presence in both areas and was in the right place to thwart Everton with two heroic clearances during the dying stages.<\/p>\n Tomas Soucek heads home to punish Everton\u2019s poor defending. Photograph: Tom Jenkins\/The Guardian<\/p>\n \u201cHis worth has been enormous,\u201d Moyes said of the Czech Republic midfielder, who has provided tremendous value for money since West Ham spent \u00a319m to make his loan from Sparta Prague permanent. \u201cBecause of his goals, the type of boy he is, he epitomises a lot of things you want as a coach.\u201d<\/p>\n Moyes was seething after losing on his first return to the club he led to Conference League glory in 2023. This was a damaging result for Everton\u2019s hopes of European football. They were underwhelming for long spells, conceded two soft goals and were beaten in stoppage-time<\/a> for the second successive week.<\/p>\n