Premier League
Aston Villa 1-1 West Ham United 

Saturday, 25th January 2025
by Chris Wilkerson

Injury-hit West Ham fought back from an early setback to take a 1-1 draw away from Villa Park this Sunday afternoon, and put in their best performance under new manager Graham Potter.

With the suspended Mavropanos joining Todibo, Bowen, Summerville, Antonio and Fullkrug on the sidelines, The Hammers were again muddled together with a makeshift starting line-up.


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West Ham started again with a back three, with Coufal replacing Mavropanos as the right-sided centre back. There was change in midfield, too, with Soler replacing Rodriguez, the on-loan Spaniard playing down the left and Soucek back into central midfield. The manager also backed Paqueta in the striker role, allowing Kudus to play off the right. Areola also returned.

Aston Villa started at top speed, a relentless opening 10 minutes that caught the visiting Hammers cold. With a makeshift defence, the away side were given no chance to settle as the pace of Ramsey, Rogers, Bailey and Watkins testing them from the off.

Twice in the early stages Kilman was forced into vital interventions as runners got in behind the defence too easily. An inch-perfect slide tackle stopped Ramsey when he was through on goal and just into the box, and a couple minutes later he had to intercept as Rogers flew in behind Cresswell and tried to square into the centre of goal for Watkins, only for Kilman to get over and make the block.

These were warnings, but West Ham were struggling to get a foot on the ball and ease the pressure. It was no surprise to see the home side take the lead.

It was far too easy for Unai Emery's side, with runners from deep driving at the spaces behind the slower Cresswell and Coufal.

This time it was Coufal exposed. A long ball forward was won by Villa and headed into midfield. Kamara quickly laid off to Ramsey, and the young midfielder instantly drove forward. He pushed the ball into Watkins's feet and the striker backed into his man on the edge of the box and then rolled it back into the path of Ramsey's continuing run forward.

Suddenly, Coufal was trying to backtrack as Ramsey pushed it past him and into the box, but the Czech defender struggled and was beaten by the faster, younger man. Ramsey drilled it across goal from the left and into the far corner with Areola well beaten to give Aston Villa a deserved lead with just eight minutes played.

They looked to have extended their lead just over a minute later as Watkins spun in behind and squared for Rogers to tap into the net, but the England striker had gone too early and West Ham were given a reprieve.

It was only when The Hammers got some possession that the game calmed down from its frantic start.

Everyone seemed to settle, but it was also a pace that the home side were never going to be able to keep up. The Villans have failed to win in their last six matches after playing in Europe, and tired legs became more and more apparent as the game went on.

But it was also West Ham's pressing, which improves notably with every passing game under Graham Potter, that tested their fitness. There was no time to rest, and maybe what was most impressive in West Ham's performance is that their effort and energy levels rarely, if ever, dropped across the 100 minutes of football.


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Never did the players shirk their responsibilities. Paqueta and Kudus both look players reborn, finding that discipline to stick to their task. Edson Alvarez is another who looks a different man, suddenly seeming again to be the player who thrived for large parts of his first season at the club.

They started to threaten, and looked a side together as a solid unit. Paqueta soon forced Mings to make a big block in front of goal, Soucek had a header stopped on way to goal from a corner, and now Villa were pushed back as Potter's side showed themselves as a team comfortable engaging in defensive work high up the pitch.

The sides found themselves struggling to find gaps in their opponent's defences as the first half went on. Watkins was unlucky to head just wide from a Tielemans freekick, and Paqueta finished the half striking wide from a bobbling ball in the Villa box after a set-piece was launched from deep, but the incidents that caught the air were removed from the actual football on offer.

One was the injury to Mings, which forced The Villans into their own makeshift defence, the left back Digne forced into the centre of defence as Maatsen came on at left back.

The half ended with petty controversies, as both sides seemed determined to slyly encourage the referee to punish misdemeanours that were quite embarrassing to watch.

First Paqueta went down in a heap after a little elbow by Digne. The French defender may have been a little lucky that VAR decided to follow common sense rather than strict letter of the law.

Standing in a line, awaiting a freekick, Paqueta purposefully walked into the back of Digne. The defender then gave him a little elbow, which was all the excuse needed for the Brazilian to drop to the deck.

It was clear he had not been hurt, and that the indiscretion was minor, but the elbow was pretty clearly sent back by the defender to hit his opponent. The referee missed it, and VAR dismissed it rather quickly.

Then, before that same freekick could be taken, Matty Cash was flat on his back. Again, VAR checked the replays, and it was pretty clear Soucek had run toward him and then reacted poorly to being blocked, shoving the right back to the ground. And again, VAR dismissed it quickly.

Even in clearing that freekick, Digne made a massive fuss out of purposefully running into an Alvarez sliding block, collapsing in apparent agony that he got over very quickly when the referee failed to care.

It was a relief to get the half finished, just to put an end to the immaturity.


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There were no changes from either side at the break, but it was West Ham who came back out and had the better of things.

The impressive Aaron Wan-Bissaka was starting to make more inroads down the right wing. The first chance of the half fell to Paqueta after a looping cross from the right back was cushioned back down at the far post by Emerson.

It was a lovely little pass to Paqueta, who took a touch and tried to spin with his back to goal and strike, only to skew wide of goal with his weaker foot.

Emerson was starting to make an impact with late runs into the left-side of the Villa box, having had a quite quiet game otherwise. He failed to make anything of a good Coufal cross after The Hammers pressed Villa into a mistake down the right.

Coufal burst down the line and delivered a good cross, but Emerson came onto it a little too fast and failed to sort his feet out in time to do much more than just deflect it to nothing.

Slowly but surely, West Ham were taking control and knocking on the door.

They had come no closer than the chance for Carlos Soler. A looping cross was dropped as goalkeeper Emi Martinez collided with his own defender and let the ball roll loose.

Soler was smart and composed, quickly knocking the ball around the goalkeeper and then trying his luck from an incredibly tight angle, only to see his goalbound effort blocked on the line by Konsa, who had wisely dropped back to the goal-line with Martinez down.

With 25 minutes to play, Villa sent on Jhon Duran, and West Ham fans would have feared the worst from football's cruel figures of fate. Linked to West Ham again this window, he had scored in the reverse fixture earlier in the season.

But he was barely seen as West Ham continued to play mostly in the Villa half. One break into the Hammers' box by Rogers was fantastically halted by a wonderful Alvarez challenge.


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Moments later, West Ham found their equaliser. Again, Wan-Bissaka carried down the right. Facing two men at the corner of the box, the wing-back turned back and found Kudus. He quickly rolled it back out wide to Alvarez, who took a touch, looked up and curled a wonderful dipping cross to the far post.

Emerson was free once more, driving in late. This time, it was perfectly in his path, and the left back made perfect connection as he met the ball with his head and powered it back across goal and into the far corner to make it 1-1 with 20 minutes to play.

He was just about to be subbed off, but that route to goal had been ignored again and again by Villa, debutant Malen shirking his defensive duties to let Emerson ghost in once again.

It was a fully deserved equaliser, and The Hammers refused to rest there. On came Scarles and Ings, replacing Emerson and Soler, and forming a new left side as Paqueta remained the man leading the line.

Soucek soon wasted a good chance, meeting a cross down the left-hand of the Villa area as Wan-Bissaka curled it in, but his header was high and wide.

Potter urged his side forward, and the players remained energetic in their front-foot defensive work. Ings came close, gathering a cross on the edge of the box and quickly firing off a low drive, only to see it sail just wide.

West Ham were finishing well, though things could have been very different as Alvarez, booked earlier in the game, escaped two very plausible yellow cards in the middle of the park. He was quickly replaced by Irving.

Suddenly, as stoppage time began, things were end-to-end, both teams now looking tired. Paqueta had the best chance, Soucek flicking the ball on to him in the box and the Brazilian popping it up with his chest before trying the overhead, only to miss the ball. The hand on his back was just enough to disturb his balance, but soft enough to escape punishment.

At the last, The Hammers thought they'd won it. The bench was celebrating, but they missed the flag. An Irving shot was fumbled low by Martinez, and his mistake was punished by Soucek, but the flag was raised. The midfielder had gone just a little too early as Irving went to pull the trigger.

It ended in a draw, a fair enough result, even if West Ham may have edged things. There was concern over Paqueta, who had pulled up chasing a ball late on and limped after the full-time whistle, but the positivity from the team's performance cheered a crowd that has seen this side fight for every minute of the match.


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Manager's Rating

Graham Potter 8/10: It has been an incredibly difficult start for Potter, with so many players unavailable, and in two keys areas of attack and defence. But he has made clear strides of improvement in their pressing, positioning and even getting them to play higher up the pitch without sacrificing stability. His use of substitutes was good and his trust in Scarles is being rewarded by a young player improving steadily with each game.

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Player Ratings

Alphonse Areola
Not quite as proactive in moving to space for passes at the back, but if one is going to be taught to play the Potter way, it does seem more likely to be the younger goalkeeper.


Vladimir Coufal
Those first 10 minutes saw Coufal lost like a rabbit in the headlights, but when The Hammers got into the Villa half and spent more time with possession and attacks, Coufal played well in the role supporting Wan-Bissaka down the right. A little limited with some punts down the line.


Aaron Cresswell
Struggled with the pace of Villa's attack early on, but settled with the team and improved.


Max Kilman
Having struggled badly for 2-3 months, this was a great performance from the centre back. His early interventions were impressive, his passing was crisp and progressive, and he looked back to the settled defender who started the season well.


Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Had a very good match, up and down the right flank all game. Quick feet helped in packed areas, he carried distances to help the team, and threw in some good crosses. Some very key tackles also stood out, especially late on with the game stretched.


Edson Alvarez
His best performance of the season, and for many months. Full of energy, making an impact at both ends, and staying strong in the middle. Very, very lucky not to end up with a second yellow for silly fouls late on.


Tomas Soucek
Has improved on the ball as the season has progressed, clearly benefitting from two coaches who prioritise that comfort on the ball. Some lovely long passes, busy defensively, but could have done better with a couple chances.


Emerson Palmieri
Was quite anonymous for large spells, but slowly realised his runs forward were not being tracked, and became a potent weapon thereafter. A great header, which had followed a lovely cushioned pass for Paqueta that set up a big chance. Needs to do more, and it is a surprise he hasn't shone yet under Potter, but this performance could spark him into life.


Carlos Soler
Came very close with that effort after Martinez's drop, but otherwise just seemed completely on the fringes of the game. The position did not seem to suit him.


Mohammed Kudus
Kudus was very important in the first half, his threat on the ball forcing Villa back and lifting the pressure off a struggling defence. He faded a little in the second half, but never shirked his work and chased back to defend well on many occasions.


Lucas Paqueta
Could have got on the scoresheet, but worked as hard as he's ever worked in a West Ham shirt. Suited the role up there, having the quick feet and the guile needed to work in tight areas, and the strength to hold the ball up and battle with centre backs. His risks are taken further up the field, and he's got very good anticipation of movement around him. His attitude is often questioned, but it was impeccable here.



Substitutes

Danny Ings
(Soler 74) Worked hard and came very close with that drive at goal.


Ollie Scarles
(Emerson 74) One fantastic tackle was then followed by a beautiful curling pass that nearly opened Villa up. Is growing in confidence and his understanding of his place in the team.


Andy Irving
(Alvarez 88) For a very late sub performance, this was good. Made an impact up and down, a couple shots and could have ended with a big impact, if only for the offside.


Guido Rodriguez
(Kudus 90+) No time to make an impact.


Lukasz Fabianski
Did not play.


Wes Foderingham
Did not play.


Kaelen Casey
Did not play.


Lewis Orford
Did not play.


Luis Guilherme
Did not play.



Match Facts

West Ham United: Alphonse Areola, Vladimir Coufal, Aaron Cresswell, Max Kilman, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Edson Alvarez, Tomas Soucek, Emerson Palmieri, Carlos Soler, Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Paqueta.

Goals: Emerson Palmieri 70                  .

Booked: Aaron Cresswell 45 Tomas Soucek 63 Edson Alvarez 68      .

Sent Off: None sent off.     .

Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Mings (Maatsen 37), Digne, Kamara, Tielemans, Bailey (Malen 65), Rogers (Buendia 72), Ramsey (McGinn 73), Watkins (Duran 65).

Subs not used: Olsen, Zych, GarcĂ­a, Bogarde.

Goals: Ramsey (8).

Booked: Tielemans, Rogers.

Sent off: None.

Referee: Peter Bankes.

Attendance: 41,628.

Man of the Match: Max Kilman.