Lean Dean aims to be West Ham and England goal machine

Already sidelined for a year with a broken ankle, he had spent seven weeks recovering from knee ligament trouble and the effects of such prolonged inactivity were beginning to tell.

While onlookers once marvelled at the punch he brought to West Ham's attack, all eyes were suddenly on his paunch. Not any more.

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Four months on, he is back to his fighting weight and looking every inch the England striker he so nearly became before injury intervened.

An England place seemed close at hand after he was named in one of Steve McClaren's squads and will surely beckon again after compelling evidence that he could prove Fabio Capello's missing link.

McClaren's successor has been bombarded with suggestions for his best attacking formation, but all those permutations appear to lack a viable candidate providing muscle as well as menace.

There are plenty who could fill the other roles, not least Steven Gerrard or Wayne Rooney as support striker, or Michael Owen alongside a target man, but genuine leaders of the line seem in short supply.

Ashton appears to meet the requirements, and they were in evidence at Goodison Park as he took on Everton's defence by himself and salvaged a point with an outstanding 68th-minute equaliser — a soaring leap above Phil Jagielka and connection that was too good for Tim Howard's despairing dive.

It was just reward for a forceful show of lone front-running and proof that Capello need look no further for an attacking spearhead, according to West Ham's England squad keeper Robert Green.

"When you look at England's strikers, the likes of Rooney and Owen, the one thing they seem to be missing is what Dean offers," he said.

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"He has unique attributes among current England forwards and he already has half an eye on getting back in there. It has to be one step at a time, because the body needs time to adjust after a lengthy injury absence. He'll feel stiff and awkward for a few days after the effort he put in here.

"It is a difficult, thankless task up front on your own. There is so much mileage to cover, but he looks like a new man. He did magnificently well and scored a wonderful goal.

"He has a vast range of qualities and is ideal as a big centre forward. If he stays fit, his sheer quality will shine through. We have seen it for the Under 21s, and it is just a question of getting him out on the pitch week in, week out."

Yakubu's 19th goal of the season gave Everton the perfect start as he brushed aside 18-year old debutant James Tomkins before volleying beyond Green.

His 20th should have arrived shortly after when a linesman wrongly raised his flag just as Yakubu expertly placed a side-foot finish beyond Green's reach.

Ashton had clipped a post and had a free-kick saved by Howard when he equalised for a sprightly West Ham side who had plenty of youthful exuberance in Tomkins and substitute Freddie Sears.

Sears might even have won it with a last-minute effort that came back off an upright, and manager Alan Curbishley said: "I've never had any doubts about those two boys. They are very level-headed. I came down to breakfast this morning and they were sitting round a table with 19-year-old Jack Collison.

"Then Mark Noble joined them and he was like the shop steward because he's about a year older. There is a nice spirit when you've got youngsters with you."

Dropping two points a week after losing at Fulham was worrying enough for David Moyes, but Mikel Arteta's most subdued 90 minutes of the season must have concerned him even more.

The Everton manager said: "Mikel's form could be better, but you could say that about a few of the players. He is important for us, and we need him to reach the high standards he has set himself."