EVERTON 2 LEICESTER CITY 2
Everton - Naismith 57', Upson (og) 88'
Leicester City - Nugent 63', Cambiasso 70'
Man of the match - Steven Naismith (Everton)
Seven months ago, Tim Howard was appointed the Secretary of State for Defence.
Or he was on Wikipedia, anyway.
The American’s achievement in making a record number of saves in a World Cup match prompted a profusion of tributes, from the playful to the prestigious.
The goalkeeper received a phone call from Barack Obama after his 16 stops against Belgium.
Should Roberto Martinez decide they need a chat in the coming days, it will be less of an accolade and more of a cause for concern.
The American's 16 saves against Belgium represented a career high. The subsequent Premier League season has been pockmarked with rather too many lows.
There was the 3-2 defeat to Crystal Palace, for instance, when Howard conceded three times and did not save a single shot.
This 2-2 draw with Leicester represented another nadir. Howard was culpable for both goals. By injury time, he cut a beleaguered figure, flailing hopelessly at Matty James’s cross and, some 40 minutes later, Martinez was fielding questions if Joel Robles, Howard’s often unconvincing understudy, should have started instead.
Publicly, the Everton manager is a great loyalist.
“I don’t see Tim as directly responsible for the draw,” he said. “Tim Howard is one of our leaders. What he brings as a goalkeeper with his understanding with other players, with what he has achieved in the game, when he is fully fit, he is a very strong performer.
“ I think we conceded the goals because we had a fear of conceding rather than a player making the wrong decision.”
Yet Howard was the common denominator, palming Jamie Vardy’s cross onto defender John Stones, which then went to David Nugent – a gift the boyhood Evertonian was happy to accept.
“An unlucky action,” Martinez said.
Howard then flapped at Danny Simpson’s cross, allowing Vardy to square for Esteban Cambiasso to put Leicester ahead.
The goals brought a reward for surprise substitutions.
Riyad Mahrez and Jeffrey Schlupp had been Leicester’s liveliest attackers.
They were removed in tandem and, two minutes later, their replacements Vardy and Nugent combined profitably for the leveller.
So Everton found themselves trailing after a football match that needed salvaging from the wreckage of a dreadful first half had been brought to life by Steven Naismith when he put the home side ahead by belatedly scoring the first goal at Goodison Park since January 10.
At 2-1 behind, then, frustration mounted with goalkeeper and supposed goalscorer alike.
Romelu Lukaku missed a string of chances, finding ever newer ways not to put the ball in the net.
The £28 million (Dh158m) striker’s recent declaration that he wants to rejoin a bigger club went down badly with Evertonians. They had booed when the crowd favourite Muhamed Besic was replaced and Lukaku’s profligacy was similar unpopular.
Yet while the Belgian has a solitary goal from his past 12 league games, there was redemption of sorts. His persistence paid off as he flung himself at a cross from Christian Atsu, another influential substitute.
Defender Matthew Upson inadvertently applied the finishing touch.
“Both goals have an element of raised your eyebrows, a scuffed shot going through our legs and the last touch coming off Matty,” Leicester manager Nigel Pearson said. An own goal proved a suitably chaotic ending to an illogical game.
Leicester played an ultra-defensive 5-4-1 formation and scored twice, while Everton could not beat the basement team as it felt Howard hit rock bottom.
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