West Brom v Everton

West Brom 2

Berahino 41′ Dawson 54′

Everton 3

Lukaku 55′, 84′ Koné 75′

FT 90 +6
HT 1-0

Romelu Lukaku had a quiet first half before exploding into life after the break

28 September 2015 Last updated at 23:11

By Saj Chowdhury BBC Sport

Romelu Lukaku scored twice as he led a superb comeback by Everton, who battled from 2-0 down to win at West Brom.

The Baggies took the lead before the break when Saido Berahino finished well, before Craig Dawson doubled the lead in the 54th minute with a header.

A minute later Lukaku rose to nod in Gerard Deulofeu's cross, and then set up Arouna Kone who fired in to level.

Belgium striker Lukaku grabbed the winner with a close-range strike from another excellent Deulofeu delivery.

The result moves Everton up to fifth on 12 points, while West Brom, who have yet to win at home, drop to 15th with eight points.

Read how the game unfolded here

Lukaku - a tale of two halves

It was a certainly a game of two halves, following a dire opening 40 minutes, but Lukaku himself had a contrasting 90 minutes.

The 6ft 3in 22-year-old has had to carry the burden of a £28m price tag ever since he signed on a permanent deal for the Toffees in July 2014, following a successful season on loan in 2013-14.

And despite scoring 20 goals last season, his performances were mixed, which prompted manager Roberto Martinez to defend him.

Everton fans must have been wondering which Lukaku they would see at The Hawthorns. They saw both.

The left side of the graphic below shows that Lukaku found himself in deep positions in the first half as he tried to get into the game.

However, with Everton chasing the match after the break, he moved further forward and became more of a threat in and around the area. The service also improved from Spaniard Deulofeu, who delivered two fantastic crosses for the Belgian's goals.

Romelu Lukaku was far more active inside and around the edge of the West Brom penalty area in the second half (right) than he was in the first half (left). He focused on playing more centrally and did not drop deep so often to receive the ball

What happened to the miserly Baggies?

For a team that came into the game having conceded only six goals in six matches, shipping three goals in one half would be a surprise to the casual observer.

However, two injuries caused the Baggies' tight defence to become flaky.

The first occurred when Gareth McAuley was hurt in training prior to the match, and the second when Jonas Olsson came off in the 28th minute with what appeared to be a groin problem.

Everton's defence also looked brittle in the first half, which again could be attributed to injuries, with John Stones, Seamus Coleman and Leighton Baines missing. Fortunately for the inexperienced backline, the team's emphasis focused on attack as they chased the game after the break.

Man of the match - Romelu Lukaku (Everton)

Lukaku came to Everton's rescue when they needed him most with two goals and an assist

Manager reaction

West Brom boss Tony Pulis: "The first goal kills us. We should deal with it. The other two goals are poor goals - the second one looks offside, the linesman is looking the wrong side. It's a poor decision.

"It's really, really disappointing because before we scored the second goal we had some good chances. We switched off and Everton will punish you."

Everton manager Roberto Martinez: "We were very disappointed with the first half. We were off, every single individual.

"The mountain we had to climb, it would have been easy to lose focus but we got three goals against the best defensive structure in the Premier League.

"Every three points is huge but it feels extra good. Deulofeu took extra responsibility, he wanted the ball all night and it was a real mature performance."

Pundit analysis

BBC Radio 5 live's Steve Claridge at the Hawthorns: "Everton looked far more comfortable when they threw the shackles off and went for it. Going 2-0 down was the best thing that could happen to them."

The stats you need to know

Twelve of Saido Berahino's 16 Premier League goals since the start of last season have been scored at The Hawthorns.
West Brom are now the only team not to concede a goal away from home in the Premier League this season (Everton had also not done so, before Monday night)
Tony Pulis saw Stoke score 188 goals in 190 Premier League games, saw Crystal Palace score 26 in 26 and has now seen West Brom score 25 in 25.
West Brom have scored 13 set-piece (excluding penalties) goals since Tony Pulis took over. Only Crystal Palace (14) have more in that period.

What's next for both teams?

A brilliant win sets Roberto Martinez's Everton up nicely for Sunday's Merseyside derby at Goodison Park, with Liverpool only a point behind them in the table. As for West Brom, they are away at seventh-place Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Lineup, Bookings (3) & Substitutions (6)

West Bromwich Albion

13 Myhill
25 Dawson
06 Evans
03 Olsson (Chester - 28' )
11 Brunt
24 Fletcher
05 Yacob (Lambert - 85' )
07 Morrison
14 McClean
33 Rondón (Gardner - 69' )
18 Berahino

Substitutes

04 Chester
08 Gardner
10 Anichebe
17 Lambert
19 McManaman
21 Lindegaard
31 Gnabry

Everton

24 Howard
27 Browning (Gibson - 72' )
06 Jagielka
25 Funes Mori
32 Galloway
16 McCarthy Booked
18 Barry
19 Deulofeu
20 Barkley
14 Naismith Booked (Koné - 72' Booked )
10 Lukaku (Lennon - 89' )

Substitutes

01 Robles
04 Gibson
07 McGeady
08 Oviedo
09 Koné
12 Lennon
21 Osman

Ref: Robert Madley

Att: 24,240

Match Stats

Possession

46 54

Shots

9 12

On target

4 4

Corners

6 4

Fouls

9 8

Live Text Commentary

Full time

Full Time Match ends, West Bromwich Albion 2, Everton 3.

90:00 +5:07 Full time

Full Time Second Half ends, West Bromwich Albion 2, Everton 3.

90:00 +4:11

Corner, West Bromwich Albion. Conceded by Ramiro Funes Mori.

90:00 +1:17

Brendan Galloway (Everton) wins a free kick on the left wing.

90:00 +1:17

Foul by Craig Gardner (West Bromwich Albion).

90:00 +0:44

Attempt blocked. Ross Barkley (Everton) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Gareth Barry.

89:39

Attempt saved. Darron Gibson (Everton) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.

88:23

Ross Barkley (Everton) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

88:23

Foul by Craig Gardner (West Bromwich Albion).

88:01 Substitution

Substitution Substitution, Everton. Aaron Lennon replaces Romelu Lukaku.

86:56

Attempt missed. Rickie Lambert (West Bromwich Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by James Chester with a cross.

85:23

Offside, Everton. Darron Gibson tries a through ball, but Ross Barkley is caught offside.

84:31 Substitution

Substitution Substitution, West Bromwich Albion. Rickie Lambert replaces Claudio Yacob.

83:14 Goal scored

Goal! Goal! West Bromwich Albion 2, Everton 3. Romelu Lukaku (Everton) right footed shot from very close range to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Gerard Deulofeu with a cross.