Everton 1 Hull City 1
The natives were audibly restless at Everton and with good cause. Hull City, third from bottom at the start of play, became the fifth team to depart with a result in the Premier League this season as the inconsistency and weak defending that has plagued Roberto Martínez's side resurfaced. Their Champions League ambitions are being undermined by the home game.
Another laboured display from Everton, who have beaten only Aston Villa and West Ham at home this term, granted Steve Bruce’s men a well-earned point as the substitute Sone Aluko cancelled out Romelu Lukaku’s sixth league goal of the campaign. There was nothing between the two teams in terms of points or performance.
A meek 3-0 defeat at Manchester United on Saturday extended Hull’s poor run to one win in 12 matches and prompted Bruce to make four changes to the side that started at Old Trafford. He received the reaction required initially as the visitors controlled possession, won a series of early corners and showed greater purpose in the opposition half than Everton.
That said, Tim Howard was not tested seriously during Hull's bright opening and the sense of an opportunity lost increased once the home side awoke midway through the first period.
Everton lacked fluency and cohesion at the start, a fault Martínez sought to rectify by asking Leon Osman and Kevin Mirallas to swap wings after only 11 minutes. Improvement followed slowly. Muhamed Besic helped Everton gain control in central midfield with his industry, energy and passing, the effective Mirallas came into the contest more, and Lukaku began to find space outside the Hull penalty area.
The £28m Belgium striker forced Allan McGregor into the first save of the night with a snapshot from 20 yards and had an optimistic penalty appeal dismissed when another effort struck Liam Rosenior’s upper arm as he pulled it away.
Everton’s threat grew, though not the entertainment level, and McGregor had to be alert when Osman back-heeled a Mirallas’ shot towards goal. Seconds later the Scotland goalkeeper was beaten as the Belgian compatriots Mirallas and Lukaku combined to devastating effect against a cumbersome Hull defence.
The Everton centre-forward flicked on a long ball from Phil Jagielka towards Mirallas on the edge of the penalty area. Michael Dawson was across quickly to shepherd the winger towards safety but was left trailing by the speed of Mirallas, who rolled a measured pass into Lukaku for the striker's seventh in all competitions.
The damage could have been worse for Bruce’s team before the first half was over. Besic went close from the edge of the area and Lukaku hesitated when Osman’s back-header fell at his feet eight yards out, enabling Hull to smother his eventual shot out for a corner.
Hull made a determined start to the second half, too. Aided and abetted by clumsy Everton defending, this time they were able to make it count.
Mirallas sent an exquisite chip over McGregor’s bar with the outside of a boot but otherwise Everton were on the back foot as City pressed higher up the pitch. When Bruce introduced Sone Aluko for Mohamed Diame, Hull’s pace increased the home side’s problems.
Aluko was only on the field six minutes when he exchanged passes with the former Everton striker Nikica Jelavic, evaded a weak challenge from Sylvain Distin and threaded a simple finish inside Howard’s near post. An emphatic introduction from the Hull forward but a dreadful goal for players of the experience of Howard and Distin to concede.
(Guardian Service)
