Aston Villa vs West Ham was a one-sided encounter as the Hammers battered Villa.
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Ben Johnson put West Ham ahead and although Villa equalized through Ollie Watkins, West Ham were ahead before the break as Declan Rice finished.
After Ezri Konsa was shown a red card for denying a goalscoring opportunity, West Ham made the most of their one man advantage as Pablo Fornals and Jarrod Bowen scored late on.
The win moves West Ham to 20 points for the season as they sit in fourth. A fourth-straight defeats sees Villa remain on 10 points.
Aston Villa vs West Ham final score, stats
Aston Villa 1-4 West Ham
Goals scored: Watkins34'; Johnson 7', Rice 38', Fornals 80', Bowen 84'
Shots: Aston Villa 9, West Ham 21
Shots on target: Aston Villa 3, West Ham 9
Possession: Aston Villa 42, West Ham 58
Three things we learned from Aston Villa vs West Ham
1. Hammers in the top-four hunt: David Moyes’ side is somehow still flying under the radar and they sit fourth in the table, level on points with Man City in third. They are robust, clinical and have a clear philosophy. Moyes is clearly very good at explaining exactly what he wants and this West Ham squad is perfect for how he wants to play. Given that they could soon be in the Europa League knockout rounds and could rest a few players for their last few group games in that competition, the Hammers are managing this Thursday-Sunday schedule very well. With Man United, Tottenham, Leicester and Arsenal far from imperious this season, could this be West Ham’s first-ever PL top four finish? The scary thing is, Moyes and his players keep saying they can play even better than they are right now.
2. Villa miss key men: They’ve lost four in a row and sit three points outside the relegation zone and Villa may start to look over their shoulders a little. Their next three games are against Southampton, Brighton and Crystal Palace and getting points from those games is now crucial. They missed Danny Ings and Douglas Luiz badly and it feels like Villa just haven’t been able to get their first-choice lineup out there this season. They have to do that soon if they’re going to drag themselves up the table.
3. Defensive issues main concern for Smith: Tyrone Mings was left out from the start and without Luiz mopping up in front of the back four, Villa were unbalanced and susceptible on the break. Just like they did during the lockdown period, Villa have to get back to basics and start defending well because they clearly have the attacking talents to hurt opponents. They’ve conceded 12 goals in their last four games. That says it all for Dean Smith and where his focus has to be.
3 - Aston Villa have conceded 3+ goals in three consecutive league games for the first time since December 2012. Diminished. pic.twitter.com/qUZwGBjFJy
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 31, 2021
Man of the Match: Declan Rice - Scored one and set up another, he ran the game from central midfield as he set the tempo. He is hitting new heights this season.
The Hammers took an early lead as Ben Johnson cut in from the right flank and fired a low shot with his left foot which beat Emiliano Martinez.
After Jacob Ramsey came off with an injury, Leon Bailey was found at the back post but he hit his shot right at Lukasz Fabianski.
At the other end Jarrod Bowen’s shot was deflected inches wide as the game opened up.
Villa equalized before the break as John McGinn played in Emiliano Buendia and he wriggled free in the box and found Ollie Watkins who finished.
But moments later Declan Rice squeezed home a low shot as he beat Emiliano Martinez from distance, as the Argentine goalkeeper was unsighted and West Ham retook the lead.
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At the start of the second half Villa were reduced to 10 men as a lengthy VAR check for two incidents led to Ezri Konsa being sent off but Kortney Hause wasn’t despite catching Pablo Fornals in the face with his elbow.
Konsa’s challenge on Jarrod Bowen on the edge of the box was initially deemed to be a yellow card. But after checking the pitch-side monitor, the referee upgraded it to a red card for denying a goalscoring opportunity.
Despite being down to 10 men, Villa came so close to equalizing. A cross into the box from McGinn found Watkins but Fabianski tipped his header onto the bar with a superb stop.
Rice and Bowen went close to scoring a third for West Ham and despite Villa battling hard, West Ham added two goals late on.
A counter-attack found Bowen and he ran free but Martinez saved his low shot. However, Fornals was on hand to tap home the rebound.
Bowen then added a fourth late on as Manuel Lanzini was played in by Michail Antonio and squared for the tireless winger to finish and seal the win.
