Three penalties, a goalkeeping howler, a first Lucas Paqueta Premier League assist in two years; West Ham United vs Brighton and Hove Albion had more drama than a Christmas day in Walford.
And, as is typical in the East of the capital these days, there would be no happy ending to cap off a script that, if written for TV, would have seen the author accused of trying to cram far too many storylines into a 90-minute timeslot.
Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta put the Hammers ahead twice. And twice they would be pegged back.
Max Kilman’s latest defensive deterioration gifted Danny Welbeck an equaliser from the spot, before Alphonse Areola handed out a late festive gift of his own, Joel Veltman’s close-range strike wrapped up in a neat little bow.
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Paqueta scored a penalty of his own, on the stroke of the interval.
West Ham United could have no complaints about the two spot-kicks awarded against them in the blinking of a first-half eye. Kilman scythed down a rampaging Yankuba Minteh before Paqueta himself dragged down Lewis Dunk, only to be let off the hook by an over-confident Welbeck.
The same, though, could not be said of Fabian Hurzeler’s visiting Seagulls.
Fabian Hurzeler not happy with West Ham United penalty incident
A third penalty of the first-half would come West Ham’s way as Callum Wilson blasted the ball at the outstretched arms of Dunk.
Around an hour had passed between Paqueta’s coolly-dispatched finish and the time Hurzeler appeared to speak to Sky Sports at the final whistle, but the German’s frustration had hardly abated.
“No one has clear footage of [the incident],” Hurzeler fumed. “I can’t understand how you can make a decision. That is not possible in the best league in the world.”
A mixed night for Alphonse Areola at the London Stadium
The ball certainly seemed to hit Dunk on the arm. Even via a variety of different angles though, the video assistant referee did not seem capable of clarifying whether it had initially rebounded off his chest.
Then again, considering that Nuno Espirito Santo was in Hurzeler’s shoes three weeks ago when the two sides last met – Georginio Rutter’s stoppage-time equaliser also saw the handball rule come under serious scrutiny – there won’t be much sympathy emanating out of the home dressing room.
Points shared at the London Stadium ❌
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“I think there were two times in front of our goal and two times they shot [into] our goal,” Hurzeler adds, his Brighton side eventually racking up 17 shots and 60 per cent of the possession.
“We had a really good start but their goal [through Bowen in the 10th minute] broke our rhythm. We had a chance to lead, but yeah. And no one understands the decision for the handball penalty. VAR footage is inconclusive, therefore no one understands it.
“We tried again in the second half but couldn’t find a third goal.”
Areola responded to his mistake with a couple of useful parries as Brighton piled on the pressure, while the lack of depth at Nuno’s disposal was summed up by the introductions of teenagers Ezra Mayers and Mohamadou Kante in the dying embers.
Speaking of providing a response, left-back Ollie Scarles ‘shut up his critics’ with a rampaging display down the left.
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