Aston Villa battled to secure a 1-1 draw at West Ham Utd, with Nicolo Zaniolo’s second-half equaliser earning us a share of the spoils.
It was an eventful encounter at the London Stadium, and although there will be slight disappointment from a Villa perspective as it felt as though had we been able to go through the gears we could have sealed all three points, but given how it played out with key incidents, a point was a good outcome.
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Michail Antonio gave the hosts the lead in the 29th minute, but they saw two efforts ruled out by VAR with Zaniolo’s equaliser in the 79th minute sandwiched in between.
The draw moves us three points ahead of Tottenham and nine above Man Utd, who both have a game in hand, as we continue to try and fend them off in the race for Champions League qualification.
Aston Villa player ratings vs West Ham:
Emi Martinez, 6 – Didn’t have a great deal to do, but will be disappointed with the goal conceded and was fortunate in a sense with the disallowed goals as our soft defensive play wasn’t good enough. Will hope to restore more solidity next time out.
Ezri Konsa, 6 – Lost Antonio for the opener in conjunction with Lenglet, and looks increasingly awkward at right-back, particularly in possession. Improved in the second half after shifting into the middle.
Clement Lenglet, 5.5 – Between him and Konsa, should have done better to prevent the goal, and while he showed quality at times, was also sloppy and careless in possession before being replaced at the break.
Pau Torres, 6.5 – Showed composure and control in possession when we needed him to, but did struggle as well with his distribution and gave possession away. Better defensively to help us gain momentum in the second half.
Alex Moreno, 5.5 – Didn’t offer enough going forward despite getting into advanced areas. Seems to be receiving the ball and asked to create rather than using his strengths to get in behind and to the byline to then find a teammate.
Leon Bailey, 6.5 – Lacked composure with his efforts on goal, but was a positive and direct presence on the right flank as he continued to try and move us up the pitch and create something.
Youri Tielemans, 6 – Did the job required of him as well as he could, but it’s clear that he doesn’t suit that deeper midfield role as much as when he’s more advanced. A surprise to see him play there, with Tim Iroegbunam surely now set to start against Wolves after the break to give us a better balance.
Douglas Luiz, 6 – Wasn’t able to create and dictate to the best of his ability as we struggled to dominate the midfield battle, but he worked hard as we needed more from him in both phases with no John McGinn in the side.
Morgan Rogers, 6 – Looked bright in the early stages as he found pockets of space between the lines and drove at the West Ham defence to create openings. As the game went on though, became less effective and was eventually replaced.
Jhon Duran, 5 – Showed glimpses with his physicality and technical ability, but not enough to avoid being replaced at half-time. Arguably not the game for him to come in and start as we lacked the control and dominance across the pitch to make the most of having two up top.
Ollie Watkins, 6 – Almost caught Areola off guard with an early chance, and although he worked hard on and off the ball for the team to try and help us get control, couldn’t really offer a significant and consistent threat over the course of the game.
Substitutes:
Moussa Diaby, 7 – Following on from his goal against Ajax, the Frenchman made another decisive impact with the assist for our equaliser. Showed great movement, touch and vision to produce a pivotal bit of quality to add to his assist for our winner at Luton.
Matty Cash, 7 – Added energy and impetus down the right side, and made a huge block to keep it 1-1. Arguably should have started this game, but has surely put himself in a strong position to start vs Wolves, simultaneously allowing us to move Konsa inside too.
Lucas Digne, 6.5 – A decent shift as he added fresh legs and technical quality on the left side to help us build sustained pressure leading up to the equaliser.
Nicolo Zaniolo, 7.5 – Decisive influence in the final half hour. Top run and finish to earn us a point, but his physicality, energy and intent raised our level and pushed us on to find a way back. Picked up another booking, but will be delighted with his impact after also earning a point against Sheffield Utd at home in similar circumstances.
