Fewer than 12 seconds of play had passed from Ryan Fraser opening the scoring for Bournemouth before Javier Hernandez hit back for West Ham.
A long ball found Marko Arnautovic, whose shot ricocheted off Simon Francis, and Hernandez was on hand to drive the equaliser past Asmir Begovic.
Quick-witted, instinctive, a true poacher’s effort and the kind of strike upon which the former Manchester United man built his reputation in this country.
David Moyes say Javier Hernandez will get more chances to impress at West Ham this season
Unfortunately for West Ham’s fans, it has been a rarely seen sight, with the £16m striker’s last goal coming way back in October.
But given the transformation of Arnautovic, West Ham boss David Moyes believes that with an injury-free run in the side there is no reason the Mexican cannot undergo a renaissance of his own.
‘We’ve got so much powerful threat up front at the moment,’ Moyes said. ‘We’ve arguably got one of the best forwards, I know there are others, but I think Marko’s up there. His form has been so good and it’s meant the more we get it up to him, the better we have been doing.
The Mexican striker has been used sparingly by Moyes since he took over from Slaven Bilic
But he grabbed the crucial equaliser for the Hammers against Bournemouth on Saturday
‘I always say to players, they’ll get their chance and it’s up to them to take it. Chicharito has played some games, he’s come on and made a difference — and he can do that. You can’t question his quality. Will he definitely stay? I’d like to think so, money will always be a talker but as far as I know nobody has made an offer. If we can get him good enough service he can be a penalty-box player.’
If he resists the overtures from elsewhere, Hernandez should have his chance too, with Manuel Lanzini — the man he replaced — expected to have a hamstring injury assessed early this week.
Moyes will look to bolster his squad but only if the right players are available, and he rejected a £12m bid from Swansea for Andre Ayew. For Eddie Howe, who completed his 100th Premier League game in charge of Bournemouth, problems at the back remain a concern, with his team now failing to keep a clean sheet since November.
Arnautovic and Lanzini were a handful, and it was only Fraser’s one-touch finish, against the run of play, that saw the Cherries take the lead.
‘I feel like a veteran,’ Howe quipped of his milestone. ‘To get 100 is nice, but it means nothing if we don’t achieve what we want to this season. It (defensive frailty) is a slight concern. We’ve worked hard to improve our goalscoring, but maybe at the cost of conceding at the other end. In terms of January, I don’t think we’ll be looking outside for help.’
But Moyes says money will be the ultimate factor on whether Hernandez stays at the club