26 January 2025
Aston Villa 1 West Ham 1
It had not been a season to write home about so far for Aston Villa. Their European exploits were seeming to have an effect on domestic duties. Everyone craves finishing in the top four and qualifying for the Champions League but it brings its own pitfalls. They welcomed West Ham to Villa Park, knowing nothing but three points would do.
Emery had to watch this one from the stands as he served a touchline ban. In the early stages he must have been enjoying what he was seeing as his side took the game to The Hammers. It did not take long before Watkins cushioned a pass into the path of Ramsey. From a tight angle, he swept the ball past Areola to break the deadlock, after only eight minutes.
Villa Park erupted as the ball hit the back of the net and the home faithful were expecting to see a dominant display. If they had any hopes of ensuring that their European adventures were not a one-off, they needed to keep pace with the sides above them. Against a West Ham side languishing in the bottom half of the table, it should not be beyond them.
Mings went into a strong challenge in his own half and immediately started writhing around in pain, signalling to the bench. On face value, considering his injury record, this looked bad. After a lengthy delay and some treatment he decided he was able to continue. All we learnt from this incident was, never believe a football player, they are just actors without a film to star in.
Coufal bundled into Ramsey out wide and the referee awarded a free-kick. As it was whipped into the box, Watkins rose and had a free header. The England striker put his effort wide of the target. He should be doing a lot better from there. With the pace on the cross, all he needed to do was find the target and on the greasy surface there was no danger Areola was stopping it.
As The Hammers lofted another ball forward, Mings attempted to jump for a header but just caught the ball and started limping. His afternoon was over. Emery will just be hoping that this is not another long-term injury for the Aston Villa defender. The manager looked somewhat despondent in his seat up in the stands.
The visitors came forward on a rare attack as a free-kick was lofted into the box. It was headed away before another shot was blocked and it broke to Paqueta in the box. He snatched at his chance and scuffed it wide of the target. He had already made himself the pantomime villain in the game, going to ground like he had been shot when Digne elbowed him in the stomach.
After the interval there was a coming together between Paqueta and Digne again. The Villa defender was on the floor screaming like he was in one of Jigsaw’s games in Saw. Predictably, he was soon on his feet and able to continue. It is nothing short of embarrassing how some players react to challenges, these are grown men after all.
A deep cross into the back post seemed to be heading out for a goal kick. However, it was kept in play and the ball dropped to Paqueta, with his back to goal. The Brazilian spun and shot all in one movement but his effort went wide of the far post. These little half-chances for the visitors were starting to build up but they could not convert any of them.
Potter’s side were starting to dominate the second-half. As Martinez came to collect a cross, he crashed into his own player and dropped it. Fortunately for the hosts, Konsa was covering and managed to clear the resulting shot off the line. It was a warning for Emery’s side that they could not afford to switch off with such a slender lead.
Despite this, it seemed to make no difference to Aston Villa. West Ham continued to press and Alvarez swung a deep cross into the box. Emerson was arriving at the back post and headed past Martinez and equalised for the visitors. It was no more than they deserved from their performance since the interval.
Villa Park fell silent apart from the away enclosure.
Emery did not look a happy man in the stands. He probably felt that he could have prevented all of this had he been on the touchline. It could be a moment of clarity for the Villa manager, as many say you see a completely different game from the stands. If he was under any illusions about his team before this game, he certainly was not now.
Things almost got worse for the Spaniard as West Ham searched for a winner. Once again, the hosts failed to clear their lines and the ball dropped to Ings on the edge of the box. He struck a low shot towards the far corner and it missed by the narrowest of margins with Martinez well beaten. So close to a winning goal for The Hammers.
West Ham had the ball in the back of the net deep into added time. Martinez spilled a routine save and Soucek laid it off for Paqueta to slot home. Graham Potter was still celebrating as the goal was chalked off for offside. The points were shared and it seemed a fair result on the balance of play. The hosts lost ground on the sides above them as a result.
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