Danny Ings netted his first goal in Europe but West Ham were fortunate to escape the Ghelamco Arena with a 1-1 draw against a dominant Gent in the first leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final. Ings gave The Hammers the lead in stoppage-time of the first half before Hugo Cuypers’ 57th-minute equaliser salvaged a draw for the in-form Belgian hosts.
Ad West Ham had to withstand 40 minutes of pressure in the first half before finding the net twice in seven minutes — although only one stood. UEFA Europa Conference League'His goal record is unbelievable' — Coles on the danger of rising star Orban2 HOURS AGO The visitors were handed a gift when Gent goalkeeper Davy Roef dropped Jarrod Bowen’s corner delivery with the ball hitting Nayef Aguerd and falling over the line.
But it was disallowed after a VAR check which determined that it had struck the hand of the West Ham defender. It would have been a goal against the run of play such was Gent’s dominance, but it had clearly rattled the hosts and just minutes later West Ham took the lead when Bowen controlled Vladimir Coufal’s quick throw, rolled it across the face of goal and left Ings with a tap-in.
But West Ham were finally undone just shy of the hour-mark when the dangerous Cuypers scored his fifth goal of the competition following a nice move involving Alessio Castro-Montes. The Premier League side had to ride their luck to take a 1-1 draw back to the London Stadium on April 20, with Gift Orban striking the woodwork with an acrobatic effort and substitute Tarik Tissoudali missing a gilt-edged chance.
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