Aston Villa falter again after Champions League match with draw against West Ham
Aston Villa falter again after Champions League match with draw against West Ham
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Aston Villa endured another Champions League hangover after they drew 1-1 with West Ham. Jacob Ramsey’s early opener at Villa Park was cancelled out by Emerson Palmieri’s second-half header to leave Villa without a Premier League win after each of their last six European games.
This was a big chance missed to close the gap on the top four while more worrying was the sight of Tyrone Mings leaving the pitch in tears after suffering a first-half knee injury. It was just his 10th appearance back after missing 445 days with an ACL but he did emerge after the break to watch from the dugout, donning a smile and giving the crowd a thumbs up.
Villa had chances to kill the game in an early blitz of chances but Mings’ withdrawal changed the dynamic and in the end West Ham may consider themselves unlucky not to earn a first away win under Graham Potter. The hosts, who travelled to Monaco in midweek, made an electric start and surged into an eighth-minute lead.
It was all too easy for Ramsey, who played a one-two with Ollie Watkins and ran past Vladimir Coufal as if he was not there before stroking into the far post. Watkins’ assist meant he became the fastest player to 100 Premier League goal involvements since Kevin De Bruyne in 2020, with 69 goals and 31 assists in 169 appearances.
Villa had the ball in the back of the net again soon after when Morgan Rogers tapped home from close range but it was ruled out for offside. Leon Bailey then shot straight at Alphonse Areola as the hosts smelt blood and Youri Tielemans dragged a shot wide.
