Share

Everton deny Swansea crucial win

Cape Town - Swansea were denied a valuable Premier League win as Everton snatched a late equaliser to earn a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park on Saturday.

The Swans broke the deadlock just before half-time with a penalty from Gylfi Sigurdsson, but Ronald Koeman's side had the better chances on Merseyside and really upped the ante in the second half.

Their constant pressure finally paid off in the final minute when Seamus Coleman headed home from a half-clearance to snatch a share of the spoils.

Both teams were looking to bounce back from defeats last time out, and the hosts made the brighter start with Romelu Lukaku forcing a save out of Lukasz Fabianski after just four minutes with his low strike from an acute angle on the left.

Bob Bradley's men created their first chance on 14 minutes when Mo Barrow picked out Leroy Fer just outside the area from the right, but the midfielder's shot was poor as it flew high and wide.

Maarten Stekelenburg was tested eight minutes later from Sigurdsson's free-kick, which took a touch off the wall and had to be tipped over the crossbar by the keeper, while Jordi Amat headed the resulting corner inches over.

Lukaku threatened again on 26 minutes, although the visitors were fortunate that Yannick Bolasie's driven cross struck the Belgian's thigh before deflecting over the target from six yards out.

Ross Barkley then went close four minutes later as he latched onto Bolasie's cross, but could only fire wide on the turn from eight yards out, while the midfielder gave Fabianski some work to do from a free-kick, which bounced just in front of the keeper and was gathered at the second attempt.

However, the Welsh outfit were presented with a great chance to open the scoring moments later when Phil Jagielka brought down Sigurdsson inside the area. The Iceland star took the spot-kick himself and didn't disappoint as he picked out the top right corner of the net.

The Merseysiders almost found a swift response as Lukaku played Bolasie in on goal, but the winger was unable to beat the on-rushing Fabianski in the 44th minute.

All was all Everton after the break as they looked to turn things around, and Bolasie should perhaps have done better when he headed a Coleman cross straight at Fabianski on 49 minutes.

The home team kept applying pressure on the Swans' goal but the final ball was always lacking, and they nearly fell further behind on 65 minutes when Jay Fulton steered his header wide from a superb Sigurdsson cross.

The Toffees were soon on the attack again but James McCarthy failed to hit the target from range, before Gerard Deulofeu sent an effort wide from a quickly-taken free-kick with 12 minutes remaining.

But their efforts were finally rewarded at the death when Coleman got on the end of a high clearance from Amat to beat Fabianski with a well-placed header.

Bolasie nearly completed the comeback win soon afterwards as his low drive was cleared off the line by Amat.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
26% - 1271 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1469 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2240 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE