20 years on from their last FA Cup triumph, Everton will not be returning to Wembley to hoist the trophy for a sixth time this coming May. The magic of the famous old competition teased and tormented the Blues tonight throughout an evening of escalating drama at Upton Park, raising Roberto Martinez's depleted team up on the back of a revelatory performance by Joe Robles and a mesmeric contribution by Kevin Mirallas until passage to the Fourth Round was in sight... before snatching it away from them at the end of a gut-wrenching penalty shootout.
There was understandable agony in defeat, not least for Robles, who had kept his side in the tie with a series of excellent saves but then crashed the Blues' last spot kick off the crossbar. And for Romelu Lukaku, whose goal in the first period of extra time, dedicated to his fallen friend Junior Malanda by way of a poignant finger to the sky, looked to have completed a stunning reversal of the tie after Aiden McGeady's dismissal just 10 minutes into the second half.
And yet, the manner in which Everton not only fought back but would often dominate and outclass their hosts despite being a man down for over an hour of this thrilling contest means that, even in defeat, this is a match likely to reverberate for weeks through a season that looked to be imploding but which is now slowly turning on the back of a timely revival of team spirit and unity of purpose.
The hole they found themselves in after 56 minutes was largely of their own making. But the difference between the way this team, knocked down by Enner Valencia's 51st-minute goal and McGeady's second yellow card five minutes later, responded to that adversity and the one that crumbled to four successive defeats in twelve days over Christmas could not have been more stark. Much of the credit should go to Mirallas, who showed no ill effects from his bothersome ankle as he swept home the equaliser eight minutes from the end of the regulation 90 and then twisted the Hammers defence into knots to lay on the goal for Lukaku. But there was a collective will and determination that ran right through the Blues' ranks, one that either dispels rumours of disharmony in the team or suggests that such discord is well and truly over.
Martinez's plan for this replay was established by his first unchanged starting XI of the season. Presumably because of Mirallas' admission that he is still feeling the effects of an ankle injury he sustained against QPR a month ago, McGeady retained his place in the side and lined up on the right side of an attacking foursome rounded out by Lukaku, Steven Naismith and Ross Barkley.
Settling into what was an open game from the outset, Everton looked the brighter, tidier and sharper of the two sides in the early going but seemed to lack confidence when it came to the final ball. A number of promising situations called either for an earlier cross, release or shot on goal but Martinez's men seemed to hold back, trying to walk the ball into the Hammers' box at times.
McGeady, whose ebbing confidence would have benefited from a goal, had two early efforts when he finally decided to try his luck from outside the box, one that he choked tamely wide and the other more accurate shot that he fired into Andy Carroll following a corner.
That early promise from Everton was almost undone, though, by an uncharacteristically awful error by John Stones who was caught trying to dribble away from his own area by Valencia but was saved by Robles who closed the angle on the Ecuadorian as he danced past Phil Jagielka and made a one-handed save to divert the shot wide of goal. The Hammers generally seemed content to hang back and try and hit the Blues on the break, though, and apart from a Stewart Downing shot that slid a yard wide they were largely being contained in the first half.
Indeed, their better moments came from cheap giveaways by Everton players. First they countered following Naismith's poor layoff but Alex Song drove his shot into Valencia instead of troubling Robles; then Barry passed straight to Matt Jarvis in midfield and McGeady clumsily brought him down earning his first yellow card of the evening and providing Allardyce's men with an opportunity from the set-piece.
The best move of the half was engineered by the visitors, though, when Naismith collected Lukaku's well-weighted ball to the left channel and he almost played McGeady in but Aaron Cresswell got across well to force the Irishman into prodding wide.
With no changes at the break, the same pattern of play continued into the second half but when Lukaku was caught offside for a third time, the Blues completely switched off as West Ham took the resulting free kick quickly through Song. Noble threaded a pass through a huge hole in midfield to Carroll who in turn found Valencia's run and the striker took a touch beyond Stones before tucking the ball past Robles.
And what could easily have been the early death knell for Everton arrived shortly afterwards when McGeady went flying into a sliding tackle on Mark Noble and earned himself an early bath. Slow motion replays would later show that Noble had craftily pulled both legs clear of the Irishman's boot to avoid all contact but then proceeded to sell the foul with aplomb prompting the referee into brandishing the dreaded second yellow. "Shit-housery" of the first order from a seasoned professional but it was a stupid challenge by McGeady that would have earned him a yellow regardless.
Martinez would respond with two positive substitutions, removing Ross Barkley, who had had another tentative and ineffective game, and the less fortunate Muhamed Besic who had been committed and purposeful but whose inexperience relative to Barry often means he is the one to make way. Bryan Oviedo and Mirallas were introduced and the Belgian looked to have pulled the Blues back into the tie when he popped up in front of goal to meet Lukaku's square pass. His side-foot shot was blocked miraculously by James Tomkins, however, who prevented a certain goal.
Valencia then had a carbon-copy chance to the one from which he'd scored earlier but Coleman was wise to it and he blocked it behind before Robles made a one-handed save to deny James Collins from the resulting corner.
Two minutes later, though, after Collins had taken Lukaku down right on the edge of the box, Mirallas did equalise with another fabulous free kick. The Belgian cleared the wall and swept a wickedly curling ball into the left side of the goal, clear of Adrián's despairing dive and the Blues were back in it but, a man down, were now facing 30 unwanted minutes of extra time. To get there they had to withstand a late assault by the home side which saw Cresswell fire over from a free kick and Robles push Nolan's over-the-shoulder shot over the crossbar.
It is to Everton's enormous credit that they carried their ascendency despite being a man short into extra time and, after Robles had been called into action once more to deny Noble, they would stun Upton Park by taking the lead. Lukaku really should have scored when Seamus Coleman's low cross deflected into his path inside the six-yard box but he somehow mis-kicked in front of the goalkeeper. He made amends, though, from the ensuing throw-in following quite brilliant work by Mirallas who jinked around two defenders with the ball seemingly glued to his feet and slid it across for Lukaku to stab home from close range. Both Belgians celebrated in the huddle of players by saluting their international teammate, Malanda.
For a long period afterwards it seemed as though there would only be one winner as Everton pressed for a killer third and Mirallas wreaked havoc on the panicky Hammers defence. Teammates Noble and Tomkins almost came to blows in a bizarre exchange as the Hammers threatened to buckle. First, he drove towards their box but had his shot charged down by Collins and then he fell under a challenge by Tomkins as he skipped into the area from the right flank two minutes into the second half of extra time.
Referee Swarbrick, whose personal performance had been deterioriating as the match wore on as he persistently ignored the elbowing and barging meted out on Everton's defenders by Carroll, initially signalled a goal kick but was forced to recognise an infringement by his assistant's flag. He gave a free kick despite the infringement having clearly taken place a yard inside the box. With West Ham rocked back on their heels, a successfully converted penalty at that stage would have killed the tie but Oviedo fired the resulting free kick into the wall.
And after Mirallas had seen an attempted curler from 20 yards bend wide, West Ham equalised from another poorly-defended corner. Tomkins rose above Jagielka and the ball dropped to the feet of substitute Carlton Cole who couldn't miss in front of the Blues' goal. 2-2 and penalties seemed inevitable but both sides would go desperately close to winning it.
Lukaku's impressive drive through the West Ham defence with just two minutes left presented him with a gilt-edged chance from the angle but he dragged his shot across goal with the away fans behind the goal ready to leap together as one at the winner. And, after Robles had palmed Amalfitano's shot away and the match now in stoppage time in extra time, Valencia was released into space behind the Everton defence but he chose to square it to Cole and that gave Stones and Robles time to smother the chance.
Blues brothers: Lukaku consoles Robles following the Spaniard's penalty miss
That just left the lottery of penalties, one Everton looked destined to lose after Adrián had pushed Naismith's spot-kick over and West Ham successfully converted their first four penalties. However, having guessed the wrong way on each of the preceding kicks, Robles went the right way for the fifth and prevented Downing from winning the tie then. Unfortunately, Everton's and the Spaniard's misery would be delayed another four kicks when, with the score level at 8-8, Robles saw his own powerful penalty cannon off the bar and in front of goal while Adrián swept home the winner.
There was equal pain and pride for Evertonians at the end as Lukaku ran straight to his crestfallen 'keeper to console him and the army of travelling Blues, who had put their rival fans to shame by eclipsing their number at Goodison last week six-fold, applauded what had been a remarkable performance despite the man disadvantage.
Yes, the Wembley dream is over for another season, potentially extending our trophy drought beyond the 20-year mark. And, yes, both West Ham goals were poorly conceded from an Everton perspective, with the passage from Leon Osman's biography about the team not training for corners still resonating with those who are baffled by Everton's weakness on set-pieces. You also wonder if a Moyes-style defensive substitution in the second half of extra time might have helped preserve the lead.
But amid the sad exit from the competition solace can be taken from some very pleasing aspects. The straight-back-at-'em" attitude that has driven the Blues to claw back deficits in each of their last three games after such a galling absence in the four games before that was pleasing to see and something that will stand Martinez's team in good stead in the coming weeks.
The goal now, of course, is to finally put a first win in 12 on the board when West Brom visit Goodison next Monday and follow that up with a run of good results timed with the resumption of the Europa League campaign which, together with ensuring Premier League survival, is now the central goal of the season. Show the kind of indomitable spirit they displayed this evening and Everton could go deep into Continental competition this season.
Lyndon Lloyd
With a long list of injured or otherwise indisposed players unavailable for selection, it limited any tinkering with the team line-up Roberto Martinez could select and he stuck with the starting XI who performed well enough on Saturday to deny Manchester City the win their high-value stars spolit fans demanded to keep them snapping at the heels of Chelsea at the top of the Premier League.
But for this evening, it’s the ‘romance’ of the FA Cup, and a replay at Upton Park as Everton cling onto the hope of a decent run in the old competition, a fine rendition of “Bubbles’ welcoming the home side with a large contingent of Everton fans in the crowd.
With both sides in changed strips, it was Everton who showed the greater intent, but McGeady, with acres of space to cross, took the extra touch to draw his man, and struggled to retain possession, Barkley not getting the call when clearly fouled by Carroll. After that, it was the home side who surged forward with pace, getting into wide open spaces, and putting in a number of crosses that were thankfully non-threatening.
Everton then applied some pressure that included a really abysmal corner delivered by Baines. At the other end, Stones made the decsiosn to play out of the Dee and made a dreadful hash of it, Valencia getting a golden chance but Robles defelcted his shot up and onto Carrolll at the far post but his header was called offside with the Everton defence all over the place. But at the other end, Lukaku seemed to have a great chance with a ball over his shoulder but he too was called offside.
Barry smacked one long that Lukaku chased down but McGeady’s shot was driven hopelessly wide with the goal at his mercy. It was end-to-end stuff, West Ham getting a soft free-kick that was header away by Jagielka as The Hammers took a more direct approach. Stones did well to shepherd Carroll and the ball out for a goalkick but the quality of play generally was getting a little scrappy — perhaps befitting a blood-and thunder cup-tie the crowd was hoping they were witnessing.
Barry jumped in high and caught studs on his thigh, leading to a good free-kick that was played in too wide for Jagielka to get much power but it led to a corner and another McGeady shot, this one blocked away, and West Ham straight down the other end. Naismith tried a slide-rule pass to Lukaku that didn’t come off but he almost got a return-ball shot on goal. Coleman then crossed well from the right but it did not reach Lukaku who then got himself offside yet again to end the next attack.
Stones was the next to bang it long, but Lukaku did not fight for it, as West Ham had a good spell without really threatening. The Blues/Whites tried to build again with smart passing through the middle ad out to Coleman but Barry wasted the good build-up with a lazy cross to nobody. Jagielka played a brilliant ball right to Lukaku’s feet and the Big Man somehow contrived to kick it behind him! Astounding! At the other end, Downing sized up to shoot but drove it a yard or so wide with Robles covering.
Everton looked to build with close-quarter passing but it all fell apart when Naismith passed to where Besic was standing a second earlier and West Ham were gamboling forward, winning a corner that Robles plucked out of the air at the far post, Everton having dealt competently with the variety of crosses incoming so far.
McGeady laid on another nice ball for Lukaku but the West Ham defender, who seemed to have no chance, somehow ended up with the ball at his feet when it should’ve been the Big Man’s… McGeady finally picked up the first card for a rather silly challenge and thankfully nothing came of the free-kick. Naismth did well to win a corner of what seemed a nailed on goal kick and it was delivered better but Stones was called for climbing as he headed goalwards.
Lukaku did brilliantly to win the ball in the centre-circle and drive forward, the ball falling nicely for McGeady but the goalie was out quickly to force his shot wide as he snuffed out the chance. At the other end, Jagielka had to pull off a Row Z clearance to deny Jenkinson. So ended the first half, lots of huff and puff… plenty of effort and intent… but nothing of any substance to really test Adrián in the West Ham goal.
Barkley tried to run in on goal after the break but Jarvis had the measure of him. At the other end, Stones tackled Valencia brilliantly, but it was given as a corner, Collins lashing high over the Everton bar.
Lukaku gave the ball away horrendously just outside the West Ham area and it was a mad scamper for all to get back. Going the other way again and a beautiful ball seemingly to Lukaku's feet but it came off him backwards and he was incredibly offside again!. From the free-kick, three simple West Ham passes up-field and a simple goal for Valencia, the Everton defence apparently switching off completely.
Lukaku made space at the other end and stroked his shot straight at Adrián as Everton struggled to respond after edging things on points, and it only got worse after another silly challenge by McGeady, leaving his leg high, saw a quite needless second yellow and red from a somewhat reluctant Neil Swarbrick.
So, in control of the tie one minute, Everton were suddenly a goal down and a man down, with a noisy home crowd now in full voice. As West Ham sat deep, Everton had to resort to backwards and sideways nonsense passes until Besic gave the ball straight to a defender and seconds later Valencia was taking a potshot at goal. Martinez thought about things for a while, then decided on a double switch, Mirallas and Oviedo on for Barkley and Besic. But not before Carroll fouled Lukaku, giving Baines a chance to curl one in that Collins headed clear.
Barkley looked to get off a shot but just gave up possession cheaply and at the other end there was almost a sight of goal for West Ham. The changes were made and Everton regrouped with a little over 20 mins to get an equalizer, or meekly say goodbye to the FA Cup for yet another year.
Naisimth and Lukaku combined to force the issue, but not enough to win the corner their play deserved, while at the other end, Carroll could only head over at the far post. Mirallas saw yellow for clipping Tomkins's heels. And it was Tompkins who denied Mirallas the equalizer from 4 yards after some fine work by Lukaku to beat Collins for a high ball. At the other end, Coleman and Baines had to combine to save a Valencia goal before Collins powered in a superb header from the corner, and it brought the very best out of Robles who kept Everton in the game with an excellent one-handed save.
Five minutes of brilliant cup-tie football had been a long time coming and it continued as Lukaku was fouled on the corner of the West Ham area, Mirallas curling in an absolutely stunning free-kick round the outside of the wall and just inside the post. A completely brilliant execution of a set-piece. Fantastic stuff!
West Ham came very close to the winner after Stones was called for handball outside the area when it was really ball to hand inside the area, Robles kicking the ball off the line, then saving the follow-up. West Ham finally used their extra man to squeeze Everton near the end and it was all hands at the back, Robles pulling off another miraculous one-handed parry to push Nolan's shot over.
There was a certain inevitability as the clock ticked through 4 mins of added time before the two sides set up for extra time but the pace and tempo of the game was unrelenting, West Ham winning a late corner that Carroll met in heavy traffic. But Everton could not clear their lines, as it kept coming back relentlessly until the final whistle brought brief respite.
Naismith created a marvelous chance via Coleman and Lukaku incredibly missed an open goal, the ball rolling impossibly under his foot. But in the next attack, a brilliant curricular run by Mirallas teed up the Big Man again, and – although he did his best to scuff it – the ball had enough power to roll over the line from close range to give 10-man Everton a priceless go-ahead goal.
Mirallas went on another incredible 60-yard run but was unable to lay it off at the end and Everton looked more confident with the one-goal lead to protect. 15 mins of extra time left to survive...
Mirallas was like a man possessed at times, driving at West Ham again and winning a corner that he took short to Barry. From that, another run into the area, this time blocked for a clear penalty. Yet again, Swarbrick bizarrely gave a free-kick outside the area that Oviedo powered into the wall and Mirallas failed to profit after being clear for a header at the far post. Mirallas then tried to curl one in but it was off-target.
10 minutes left and Everton kept pumping the ball forward to put what pressure they could on the increasingly demoralized home side, who made their final change, Cole on for Collins. At this point The Blues tried using the sideways passing to waste time but an offside pass saw West Ham get up the other end and win a corner that Cole followed up to poke home off the far post header, almost impossible to defend.
So more work still needed in this tremendous game; with two goals in extra time and penalties looming, West Ham winning another corner, Carroll steamrolling in but fouling as he headed wide. But another corner, this time gathered by Robles. It was horribly ragged at times.
Lukaku finally took things into his own hands, powering into the area but incredibly driving across goal when it seemed easier to burst the net!!! What a maddening performance from him today... Another brilliant save was required by Robles as Amalfitano went for glory. Then Nolan and Noble laid into Tompkins in an amazing scene.
An unbelievable scramble at the end defies descriptions as Valencia and Cole somehow managed not to score the winner for West Ham and the game incredibly went to penalties... almost an anti-climax after a crazy-crazy end-to-end game in the fashion of the very best FA Cup ties of old...
And so to the penalty shoot-out, Everton with the first kick:.
Mirallas: scored down the middle – 0-1 Noble: sends Robles the wrong way – 1-1 Naismith: straight at Adrián, saved – 1-1 Nolan: sends Robles the wrong way – 2-1 Lukaku: sends Adrián the wrong way – 2-2 Carroll: sends Robles the wrong way – 3-2 Baines: Adrián almost saves – 3-3 Cresswell: Down the middle – 4-3 Oviedo: Down the middle – 4-4 Downing: Robles saves low to his left! — 4-4 Barry: Smacks it home! – 4-5 Cole: sends Robles the wrong way – 5-5 Stones: only just! dreadful penalty... – 5-6 Valencia: sends Robles the wrong way – 6-6 Jagielka: slides it home nicely – 6-7 Amalfitano: sends Robles the wrong way – 7-7 Coleman: sends Adrián the wrong way – 7-8 Jenkinson: smacks into the roof of the net – 8-8 Robles: Smacks the bar with ridiculous power - 8-8 Adrián: sends Robles the wrong way – 9-8
You had to laugh at the end... Robles, who had done so well during the game, could not resist putting his entire massive frame behind blasting the ball goalwards, hitting the underside of the bar and bouncing back.... GAME OVER!
Michael Kenrick
Having rescued this FA Cup Third Round tie at the death a week ago, Everton get the chance to complete the job and, potentially, turn their season around in the replay in East London.
Romelu Lukaku, the Blues' goalscoring hero in stoppage time in the first meeting, will play in tribute to his friend and former teammate Junior Malanda, angling to score what would be a fifth goal in as many games against the Hammers and fire Roberto Martinez's side into the fourth round.
The Belgian's strike that cancelled out James Collins' header felt at the time like it could be a pivotal moment in a season that had veered well off course and its galvanising effect was clearly evident in Everton's more determined and resilient display against Manchester City during Saturday's 1-1 draw in the Premier League.
Martinez will now be looking to drive his charges further down the road of recovery by negotiating what will unquestionably be a difficult match against a virtually full-strength West Ham.
Sam Allardyce, who used his press conference yesterday to make the claim that he his more flexible in his approach to the game than the Toffees' boss, will be without just two of his first-team players in the form of Diafra Sakho, who has a back injury, and Cheikhou Kouyate who is international duty preparing for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Everton, on the other hand, will be missing eight players from their senior squad – the list incluedes Christian Atsu (AFCoN), Silvain Distin (groin injury), Steven Pienaar (knee injury) and Darron Gibson (knee injury) – of which James McCarthy will be the most sorely missed as he continues his recovery from what is now a long-standing hamstring problem. Thankfully, Muhamed Besic has been an able deputy, matching the Irish international's tenacity, workrate and ground covered as he continues to mature and he will almost certainly partner Gareth Barry in defensive midfield.
Also continuing to deputise with increasing confidence and assuredness is Joel Robles in goal who is in line to make his fiftth successive start in place of the injured Tim Howard. Though he is yet to keep a clean sheet, the Spaniard has been showing signs that he is settling into his role after a startlingly poor performance against Krasnodar six weeks ago.
Given that the next fixture isn't until next Monday, Martinez is likely to stick close to the team that started against City, with the only real question mark likely to be around who starts out of Aiden McGeady and Kevin Mirallas. The Belgian admitted this week that he is still feeling pain in the ankle that was injured by Jordan Mutch in the game against QPR four weeks ago and may start on the bench again.
Given how they responded in the first match last week and against City on Saturday, the do-or-die nature of the reply could suit Everton as there will be no hiding in the relative safety of a draw and no one will want the drama of a penalty shootout.
It's going to need another stubborn defensive display like that which frustrated Manuel Pellegrini at the weekend but if Everton are to prove they are getting back to the lofty standards they set last season, they should win this as they did on Lukaku's debut in September 2013. A repeat of that thrilling match would do just fine...
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