Club News

Everton 3 Albion 0

Albion remain eighth on 40 pts from 28 games

  • Mirallas nets opener from rebound (39)
  • Schneiderlin turns and flicks home second (45) 
  • Lukaku heads in third for Toffees (82)
  • Attendance: 39,592
  • Albion Star Man: Claudio Yacob
ALBION suffered successive Premier League defeats for the first time in 2017 as they fell to a 3-0 reverse against Everton at Goodison Park.

A six-minute spell at the end of the first half proved the difference as Kevin Mirallas and Morgan Schneiderlin both pounced after a resilient Baggies had looked tough to break down in the first half.

And Albion could find no way back in the second half, Romelu Lukaku heading a late third, as they tasted defeat for the first time in four visits to Everton.

Having fallen to Crystal Palace last weekend, it is the first time Tony Pulis' side have tasted back-to-back league losses since December.

Albion remain eighth in the table on 40 points from 28 matches heading into next Saturday's Hawthorns clash against Arsenal.

Pulis made three changes against the Toffees - Claudio Yacob, James McClean and Hal Robson-Kanu coming in for James Morrison, Chris Brunt and Salomon Rondon.

Former Albion man Lukaku flashed an effort across the face of goal after 16 minutes while Darren Fletcher looped a header into the hands of Joel Robles at the other end.

The ever-dangerous Lukaku nodded down and wide from Leighton Baines' cross just before the half-hour mark before Nacer Chadli forced a diving low save from Robles.

Yet it was the hosts who broke the deadlock in the 39th minute as Mirallas poked home a rebound after Ben Foster had parried Ross Barkley's shot. 

And it was 2-0 on the stroke of half-time as Lukaku showed his strength before threading the ball through to Schneiderlin, who turned Jake Livermore and flicked the ball home.

Chadli stung the palms of Robles soon after the restart while Barkley found the side-netting at the other end.
 
Pulis turned to Brunt, Rondon and Morrison off the bench with around 15 minutes remaining. 

But Albion could find no way back as Lukaku headed home a third in the 82nd minute.

Albion: Foster; Dawson, McAuley, Evans, Nyom; Livermore, Yacob (Morrison 79), Fletcher (c); Chadli, McClean (Brunt 75); Robson-Kanu (Rondon 76).

Subs: Myhill, M Wilson, Olsson, Field.

BOOKED: Yacob (foul, 73), Dawson (foul, 88)

Everton: Joel, Coleman, Jagielka (c), Williams, Baines (Funes Mori 46), Barry (Calvert-Lewin 83), Davies, Schneiderlin, Barkley, Mirallas (Gana 70), Lukaku. 

Subs: Stekelenburg, Valencia, Holgate, Lookman.

BOOKED: Barry (foul, 81)

Referee: Graham Scott (Oxfordshire)