When can Aston Villa dare to dream? When will Unai Emery accept that talk of a title challenge is far from fanciful?
Villa’s standards dropped and their legs looked heavy but their hunger knows no bounds at the moment. They were stretched by West Ham, who led twice before squandering a vital win in their battle against relegation, and still Emery’s indefatigable side dug deep for a response before emerging victorious for the 15th time in 17 games thanks to a virtuoso display from Morgan Rogers inspiring a second-half turnaround.
This was Villa in fighting mode. They fell behind to the fastest goal in the Premier League this season, trailed 2-1 at half-time and were second best for long spells, but they refused to roll over. West Ham, still stuck in the bottom three despite producing one of their best performances under Nuno Espírito Santo, just could not put them away. They were pegged back by Rogers early in the second half and then, just when it seemed that West Ham were gearing up for a late push, the England international made Nuno’s side rue granting him the space to make it 3-2 with a goal that owed everything to the Villa attacker’s wondrous technique and appetite for risk.
It was a rocket from Rogers, the ball ripping off his gifted right foot and flying into Alphonse Areola’s top-right corner. It was not quite as dramatic as last week’s last-gasp win over Arsenal – the decisive goal arrived with 11 minutes left this time – but the impact felt no less significant. This was Villa’s sixth consecutive league win and it pleased Emery that it came with key players missing at the back. “Fantastic,” was the manager’s verdict on Victor Lindelöf, who deputised for Pau Torres in central defence and dealt with West Ham’s pressure before providing the pass for Rogers to fire Villa three points off Arsenal at the top of the table.
Hands up if you had Villa sitting in third place as Christmas approached when they went six games without winning at the start of the season? It has been a remarkable turnaround, although Emery has tried to keep expectations realistic. This was another test of his side’s staying power. Emery made six changes after last Thursday’s victory over FC Basel in the Europa League but he acknowledged that it was not easy for Villa to hit their physical targets after a fast start from West Ham.
There was a fine atmosphere at kick-off. The London Stadium had risen to pay tribute to the late Billy Bonds and the positivity grew when an error from Ezri Konsa presented Mateus Fernandes with the chance to whip West Ham in front after only 29 seconds.
Both defences were uncertain during a breezy first half. Villa quickly levelled when Ollie Watkins pressured Konstantinos Mavropanos into heading John McGinn’s cross into his own net but they were indecisive when West Ham scored again. El Hadji Malick Diouf’s cross from a lovely Lucas Paquetá pass was only half cleared, Freddie Potts replied with a hopeful shot and Jarrod Bowen was onside when he diverted the ball past Marco Bizot, deputising in goal for the injured Emi Martínez.
Emery presumably had a few choices for his players at half-time. “I am so happy with how they responded,” the Spaniard said. “Twice we were behind but how they kept the commitment is how we are as a team – being ambitious, being responsible, the commitment tactically.”
It helped that West Ham have not kept a clean sheet since 31 August. Nuno has not fixed their defensive ills since replacing Graham Potter and he bemoaned his side’s failure to hold on to a winning position for the second consecutive week. “This is something we are not able to do – control and manage the game when we are in front,” West Ham’s manager said. Why is it happening? “I wish I could give you a proper answer with a proper solution,” Nuno replied.
The frustration for West Ham is that they did a lot well, with Soungoutou Magassa, Fernandes and Potts competing in midfield. Yet Nuno despaired when Villa pounced after Paquetá lost possession in the 50th minute. Youri Tielemans was away down the right seconds later and his cross reached Rogers, who controlled before scoring from close range.
West Ham at least kept going. Bowen had a goal disallowed for the tightest of offsides but Villa found the breakthrough when Magassa pushed too high and lost Rogers, whose finish made it even harder for Emery to downplay his side’s title credentials.
