Aston Villa started their Premier League campaign with a bang as they secured a 2-1 victory against West Ham United at the London Stadium.
Unai Emery’s men got off to the perfect start when new signing Amadou Onana powered home a Youri Tielemans corner inside the first four minutes to put Villa in front.
The Villans began the 2024/25 campaign where they left off and should have doubled their lead in the first half as the likes of John McGinn and Leon Bailey had decent chances to score.
Sadly for Villa, the complexion of the game changed completely when Matty Cash conceded a soft penalty – that arguably shouldn’t have been given – as Lucas Paqueta got the hosts on level terms.
West Ham then gained confidence in the match but rarely did enough to test Emi Martinez while the visitors continued to look like a threat on the counter-attack and had opportunities to win the match.
That winner came through the controversial Jhon Duran and it just had to be him. Duran was linked with a move to the Hammers and he even performed an ‘irons’ gesture on Instagram Live, which angered Villa fans.
However, they will probably forgive him now after he fired his side to three points from the bench and proved what a talent he is.
Here’s how the players rated at the London Stadium for Aston Villa.
Aston Villa playing ratings vs West Ham
Emi Martinez – 6
Martinez was rarely called into action in the first half as Villa started the game dominantly. The only thing he had to do was pick the ball out of his net from a penalty that shouldn’t have been given. But produced a couple of quality saves in the second half.
Matty Cash – 6
Cash conceded a soft penalty that should never have been awarded and the 26-year-old struggled to live with Mohammed Kudus at times but stood up to his task.
Ezri Konsa – 6.5
Didn’t have much to do in the first half but once West Ham gained some control in the match, he had to deal with the physical Michail Antonio, who caused Villa some problems with his strength. Did brilliantly to block on the line to deny the hosts a last-minute equaliser.
Pau Torres – 6
Like his defensive partner, the Spaniard was secure in possession and held his own against Antonio and the other threatening West Ham attackers. Much improved from some of his poor pre-season displays.
Lucas Digne – 6.5
Was a source of creativity for the visitors down the left, sending balls into the channels and pushing high up the pitch.
Youri Tielemans – 6
Placed his corner superbly onto the head of Onana to score the opening goal of the match. Was typically astute in possession, recording most of his passes accurately however, he was often beaten in physical duels.
Amadou Onana – 7.5
Made the perfect start to his Villa debut when his powerful header put his side in front. Was a dominant force in midfield alongside Tielemans, getting the better of West Ham’s engine room on numerous occasions.
Leon Bailey – 8
Wreaked havoc against the Hammer’s defence on the counterattack. They couldn’t live with his electric pace and incredible dribbling. He was easily Villa’s biggest threat in the match, carrying on where he left off last season.
Morgan Rogers – 7
Starting in a central attacking midfield role, Rogers was integral for Villa, driving forward with his unstoppable pace and power. West Ham’s Guido Rodriguez struggled to live with the 22-year-old, who was excellent.
John McGinn – 6.5
McGinn is relentlessly consistent with his performances and against the Hammers, that was no different as the Scottish machine set the tone with his pressing and incredible energy. However, he did lack a bit of a cutting-edge in attack playing from the left flank.
Ollie Watkins – 5
Emery’s biggest worry heading into the game was whether to start Watkins. In the end, he couldn’t resist putting him in the starting XI, but after playing no minutes in pre-season, the Englishman looked rusty. He didn’t look as sharp as he normally does and some of his touches got away from him. He was replaced by Duran on the hour mark which proved to be an inspired substitution.
Substitutes
Jhon Duran – 8
Came on for Watkins on 60 minutes and missed a golden opportunity to score but made amends later on as he fired his side to three points with an emphatic finish in the box. It just had to be him, didn’t it?
Jacob Ramsey – 7
Was one of three substitutes involved in the winning goal and supplied an inch-perfect assist for the Colombian striker, pulling the ball back to him after he touched the ball down expertly. Looked electric when he came on.
Ian Maatsen – 7
He was another who changed the game from the bench with his electric pace down the left and it was his brilliant touch into Ramsey that created an opportunity for the Villans to score, which they did.
Jaden Philogene – 6
Came on for the final 15 minutes of the match down the right but didn’t get into the game as much with most of Villa’s attacking play coming down the left. But did have a half chance to score late on.
Kosta Nedeljkovic – 6
Came on for his Premier League debut for Cash late on and didn’t get time to show his attacking intent down the right. However, he did make some vital interventions and tackles to stop the hosts equalising.
