Marko Arnautovic brace rescues West Ham in 2-2 draw with Brighton

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:25 am

Marko Arnautovic scored twice in the space of two minutes as West Ham United salvaged a 2-2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion after conceding two second half goals at the London Stadium on Wednesday.

After a dull first half, with striker Andy Carroll making his first Premier League start in a year as the lone target man before being replaced at the interval, the game between the two mid-table sides burst into life.

Brighton took the lead in the 57th against the run of play when goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski punched out a corner shot as far as Dale Stephens, who volleyed the ball home from the edge of the area.

The visitors went 2-0 up in the 59th through Shane Duffy, again off a corner kick, who flicked the ball in from a tight angle at the back post.

If West Ham looked to have crumbled, Arnautovic had other thoughts.

The Austrian pulled one back from close range in the 66th and equalised in the 68th when substitute Michail Antonio crossed from the right -- with the ball almost over the byline -- for him to fire home.