AMSTERDAM – Everton netminder Tim Howard surrendered a six-game win streak against West Ham United on Saturday, but came up big late to extend his unbeaten run against the English Premier League counterparts to 16 games across all competitions with a 1-1 away draw.
In all, the US goalkeeper registered four saves and three cross captures to go with solid distribution. Howard had one scary bobble of a cross with the game tied near the hour, but quickly recovered to make a huge stop on Manuel Lanzini a mere moment later.
Howard added a pair of saves in the waning moments to secure the point that tentatively nudged Everton ahead of arch-nemeses Liverpool into eighth place.
Elsewhere, DeAndre Yedlin worked another strong full shift at right back as hard-luck Sunderland fell 1-0 to visiting Southampton.
The former Seattle Sounder enjoyed his big moment just before the hour mark, when he lunged low to nod a goal-bound Jose Fonte shot clear. It was one of Yedlin's 10 clearances on the day, which he packaged neatly with game-best totals of four tackles and four cross smothers. However, the youngster and his teammates managed just nine shots and stayed within the weekend reach of Brad Guzan's last-place Aston Villa thanks to a late Saints penalty conversion.
Geoff Cameron returned from minor injury to help Stoke City seal a 1-0 home triumph over struggling holders Chelsea. The defender came on for the last 20 minutes to help the Potters jump to 12th place.
A flight below in the Championship, Jonathan Spector and sixth place Birmingham City strolled to a 5-2 away win over Tim Ream's Fulham.
The hosts, who started Ream at right back before shifting him to the left side of a three-man back line, were under siege much of the afternoon. With the Blues already up two goals in the 30th minute, Ream buzzed the crossbar with a left-footed rocket from 15 yards.
Spector & Co. snapped a three-game winless slide to pull to within six points of the top. Despite a decent outing that saw Ream miss on just two of 49 passes while posting three tackles and three pass picks, Fulham dropped to 12th in the table.
Daniel Williams came on for an active final half hour, but could not help rally Reading in a 2-0 defeat at Cardiff City.
The US midfielder managed to squeeze nine positive passes in the Cardiff end and drew a last-minute save from long range. Now winless in five, the Royals slipped to eighth place.
With new manager David Wagner observing from the stands, Duane Holmes made his season debut for Huddersfield Town in a 3-0 home loss to Leeds United.
As Whites back-up Charlie Horton watched on, Holmes entered to provide a spark but no end product for 19 minutes. The 19th place Terriers saw their win drought reach four, while Leeds moved up to 15th.
Also, Cody Cropper served as MK Dons backup netminder in a 2-1 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion. With four losses in five, the visitors stand above the trap door by a point.
Over in the Bundesliga, Borussia Mönchengladbach winger Fabian Johnson and visiting Ingolstadt midfielder Alfredo Morales squared off for the first time in a 0-0 stalemate.
Both US internationals were quite active at the offensive end, combining for eight shot attempts and a handful of dangerous set-ups. Having misfired on a couple of early distance tries, Morales was left shaking his head after shaving the near post from a great position just after the break.
In the 60th minute, Johnson was unfortunate to have a close-range effort blocked on the line. Shortly thereafter, Morales drew a good save with a 16-yard blast at the end of a good team move.
As stoppage time began, Johnson picked out Thorgen Hazard with a back post cross that ended with his teammate robbed at point-blank range. The sixth-place Foals kissed their five-game league winning roll goodbye, while 10th-place Ingolstadt remain winless in four.
One level down, Bobby Wood notched a goal and an assist to help Union Berlin battle to a 3-3 home share with FC Nürnberg.
After the guests grabbed an early lead, Wood leveled matters with his fifth goal of the season on 21 minutes. A short time after having his pocket picked on an area raid, the US forward gobbled up a rebound to reach the top 10 of the 2. Bundesliga scoring chart.
Nine minutes past intermission, the Iron Union took its turn in the lead with Wood earning his second helper of the term in the process. The Berlin boys forced a turnover in the Nürnberg end and the American quickly released Steven Skrzybski to fire home from outside the area. The hosts would eventually blow a two-goal edge late to stay stuck in 13th place.
Switching to Scotland's second division, Gedion Zelalem flashed some skill as Rangers cruised to a 4-0 victory over guests Alloa Athletic.
The US Under-23 playmaker breached the box to feed the set-up man on Martyn Waghorn's second and could have repeated that feat late from a slick back-heel pass were it not for a line clearance. Back on track after their first defeat of the season last weekend, Rangers maintained their five-point penthouse cushion.
