West Ham come back twice to earn 2-2 draw against Brighton
Ben Johnson and Tomas Soucek scored second-half goals as West Ham United twice came back from a goal down to earn a 2-2 draw at home to Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League on Sunday.
Brighton created the early chances at London Stadium and deservedly took the lead just before halftime when striker Neal Maupay pounced on a loose ball in the box to score his first goal since October.
After West Ham failed to record a single attempt on target in the first half, manager David Moyes introduced attacking midfielder Manuel Lanzini and forward Andriy Yarmolenko at the interval.
The attacking duo were instrumental in the build-up to West Ham's equaliser on the hour mark, with wing back Johnson finding the net from close range to mark his first goal for the club.
Centre back Lewis Dunk thought he had won the game for Brighton in the 70th minute when he smashed in his first goal of the season from a quickly taken corner.
But Czech midfielder Soucek came up with his third goal of the month for West Ham when he was left unmarked at a corner and powered home a header with eight minutes left on the clock.
Graham Potter's Brighton had to settle for a fifth draw in their last eight games in the competition. They are in 16th place on 13 points, two points above the relegation zone.
"It is disappointing not to take three points, I felt it was there for us," Potter said. "We didn't defend the corner well for the second goal, and those details punish you at this level.
"We didn't do much wrong. We could have managed the game better. We need to keep working to get three points."
West Ham, who next travel to Southampton on Tuesday, stay 10th in the table and edge up to 22 points from their 15 games.
Early Bamford penalty gives Leeds win over Burnley
A fifth-minute penalty from Patrick Bamford was enough to give Leeds United a 1-0 win over Burnley at Elland Road in the Premier League on Sunday, but Sean Dyche's side were left furious after an Ashley Barnes effort was ruled out.
Bamford, who spent a spell on loan at Burnley earlier in his career, drilled home the early spot kick after referee Robert Jones ruled that Burnley keeper Nick Pope had brought down the Leeds forward. It was the Leeds man's 10th league goal of the season.
Burnley were flabbergasted, however, when Barnes hooked the ball into the net after Leeds keeper Illan Meslier had failed to reach a high ball into the box, only for the goal to be ruled out.
Jones ruled that Burnley defender Ben Mee had fouled Meslier before the ball fell to Barnes, although replays suggested it had been the keeper who fouled Mee when he charged out to try to reach a high cross and rammed his knee into Mee's back.
The Clarets dominated after the break but Meslier, who struggled with crosses throughout the game, did well to keep out near post drives from Barnes.
But while Leeds looked well below their best, lacking their usual high-energy approach, Burnley weren't able to turn their possession or Meslier's difficulties in the air into enough clear cut chances.
Burnley manager Sean Dyche entered the field after the final whistle to show his feelings to the referee and not surprisingly felt his team had suffered an injustice.
Dyche was unhappy with both the penalty decision and the disallowed goal.
"I can't see the penalty for Leeds myself - Nick Pope gets a clear foot on it. Football is in an odd place. The one at the other end where we had a goal disallowed, it's not a foul, it can't be a foul. Ben Mee has his eyes on the ball," he said.
"It should be a penalty for us - you can't run and knee someone in the back. I'm very aggrieved by that, those moments are important," he said.
Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa declined to comment on the incident but conceded his team had struggled.
"It was very difficult. Burnley could have drawn the game in the second half, they were two different halves. In the first we were able to impose our game, in the second, especially in the last part, it was difficult for us to neutralise their strengths," he said.
Leeds move up to 11th place on 20 points, while Burnley are 16th on 13 points.
