Mohamed Belloumi snatched a point for Hull City as Everton threw away a hard-won lead in a breathless 2-2 draw at the MKM Stadium.
Match facts
- Result: Hull City 2-2 Everton (HT 0-0)
- Competition: Premier League, Matchweek 6
- Venue: MKM Stadium, Hull
- Scorers: Hull — Joe Gelhardt 48', Mohamed Belloumi 74'; Everton — Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall 55', Thierno Barry 68'
- Red cards: None
- Next: Both sides continue Premier League Matchweek 7
How the match unfolded
A tense, goalless first half still produced the afternoon's biggest talking point. Around the 35th minute Everton thought they had broken through when Brennan Johnson finished at the back post after a scramble from a Jarrad Branthwaite corner. Premier League Match Centre confirmed via VAR that the referee overturned the original goal decision: Johnson was in an offside position and deemed to be challenging an opponent for the ball. The score stayed 0-0 at the break despite Everton looking the sharper side for long spells.
Three minutes into the second half Hull led. After Oli McBurnie worked space and an Ainsley Maitland-Niles error, Joe Gelhardt dinked a finish over Jordan Pickford and into the far corner. Everton responded inside ten minutes: Maitland-Niles crossed deep and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall headed the equaliser in the 55th minute, making amends for the earlier defensive lapse.
Thierno Barry then put the visitors ahead in the 68th minute. Sorba Thomas misplaced a pass across his own half, Dewsbury-Hall intercepted and played Barry in, and the forward finished emphatically after earlier missing a gilt-edged chance. Hull, though, would not go away. Substitute Belloumi — on for Gelhardt as part of a triple change with Tim Iroegbunam and Eliot Stroud — levelled in the 74th minute. Stroud beat challenges down the flank, Branthwaite missed his tackle in the box, and Belloumi's shot beat Pickford despite the England goalkeeper getting a hand to it.
Belloumi steals the headline
Four second-half goals flipped a drab opening into a chaotic contest. Everton created the clearer chances overall — ESPN listed them with 15 shots and about 1.71 xG against Hull's nine shots and 1.33 xG — yet defensive lapses after taking the lead cost David Moyes two points on the road. Hull stayed unbeaten at home since returning to the Premier League, according to ESPN's match wrap.
BBC Sport's live page and Yahoo's final blog both stressed how quickly the lead evaporated once Everton switched off. Moyes later introduced Hayden Hackney and Jake O'Brien, then Charly Alcaraz and Tyler Dibling, but neither side could find a winner in five added minutes. Pat Nevin, on BBC Radio 5 Live, questioned why Belloumi does not start more often after the substitute's decisive finish.
Table picture
Everton remain unbeaten this season and sit fifth on 10 points after six matches (2-4-0). Hull are ninth on nine points (2-3-1). For the Tigers, another home draw keeps momentum after a strong start that already included results against Manchester United and Chelsea. For Everton, it was another away afternoon that slipped after they had looked in control — seven games without an away league win, per Yahoo's full-time notes — despite Dewsbury-Hall and Barry briefly putting them on course for three points.