Aston Villa 1 West Ham United 4
Aston Villa went into this season hoping to jostle with the likes of West Ham to put pressure on teams even higher up. But the clubs were poles apart at Villa Park, where David Moyes’ team consolidated their position in the top four thanks to an emphatic victory over the bedraggled hosts.
Although Ollie Watkins briefly drew Villa level by cancelling out Ben Johnson’s opening goal, West Ham always looked the more likely winners.
Declan Rice restored their lead before half-time. Villa’s problems deepened when Ezri Konsa was sent off early in the second half before Jarrod Bowen and Pablo Fornals scored late on to ensure the scoreboard properly reflected the visitors’ superiority.
The first half was like a showcase of two teams at very different stages of development. West Ham were strong and slick, a formidable unit in which every player knew his part and performed it well. Villa were a weak jumble.
At times they looked as if they did not know what to do, or did not have the confidence to do it after three defeats on the spin. Dean Smith had tried to avoid a fourth by changing his system and making bold personnel selections, including drafting in Kortney Hause for the dropped captain, Tyrone Mings. But Villa appeared to be gripped by tension as they passed sloppily and lacked energy, standing off their opponents from the first whistle.
West Ham, so smooth in comparison, were quick to take advantage. In the seventh minute Rice strode through midfield as Villa players practically waved him forward, then he floated a pass wide to Johnson on the right. The full-back cut inside Matt Targett with far too much ease before curling a low left-footed shot beyond Emiliano Martínez. It was a splendid finish by the 21-year-old academy graduate whose emergence since Vladimir Coufal’s injury offers further vindication of Moyes, who was previously criticised for not securing a more experienced right-back as deputy to the impressive Czech. Johnson has excelled to the extent that the fit-again Coufal was left among the susbtitutes here.
Villa’s malaise continued after the early setback. In the 16th minute Matty Cash had to make two important blocks to prevent Bowen from increasing the visitors’ lead. By the 20th minute the home crowd were groaning at Villa defenders for playing the ball around the back. It was not that Villa were intentionally negative, rather that they seemed unsure how to play their way forward.
They were not helped by the loss to injury of Jacob Ramsey in the 15th minute, after which the 36-year-old Ashley Young joined the attempt to stop Rice and Toumas Soucek from controlling central midfield.
Leon Bailey, finally fit to make his first start for Villa after several electrifying performances off the bench, made little progress down the left, where Johnson dealt with him well. Emiliano Buendia, Villa’s record signing, wielded little influence.
The encouraging thing for Villa was that when they pressed with conviction for the first time, in the 30th minute, Watkins forced Lukasz Fabianski to give away a corner. The goalkeeper punched the corner away decisively but Villa were back troubling him again two minutes later, Cash sending the hosts’ first shot wide from over 20 yards. West Ham were hardly on the ropes but soon Villa landed a blow that counted.
John McGinn invited Buendia to do something useful down the right and the Argentinian obliged, dodging past a flimsy challenge by Fornals and firing in a low cross that found its way to Watkins. The striker finished smartly from 12 yards. The balance of play may have been lopsided but the scores were level.
Not for long. Four minutes after being pegged back, West Ham reasserted their supremacy. Rice was again allowed too much time and space in midfield and he used it to rifle a low shot from 25 yards into the net via the post.
Martínez, apparently unsighted, was uncharacteristically slow to react. At half-time Villa were fortunate to be only 2-1 down.
Their luck soon evaporated, with Konsa sent off moments after the resumption. He was initially only booked for bringing down Bowen just outside the area but the referee, Chris Kavanagh, reached for the red after reviewing the incident on the pitchside monitor.
Buendia was withdrawn and Mings introduced as Smith tried to shore up his depleted team. The 10 men nearly did much more than that in the 57th minute, when McGinn crossed from the right for Watkins. Fabianki tipped the striker’s header on to the crossbar and out.
With nothing left to lose Villa finally found real purpose. West Ham were in a fight. But Fornals soon finished off the hosts. Moments after being booked for an ugly challenge on Marvelous Nakamba, the midfielder rounded off a counterattack by netting from close range after Martínez parried a shot by Manuel Lanzini into his path. Lanzini presented Bowen with an even simpler finish three minutes later after West Ham sliced through Villa again. – Guardian
