New Delhi: At Villa Park, the final whistle blew as West Ham United equalised late to register a well-earned 1-1 draw against the hosts, Aston Villa! Despite leading 1-0 at the half, the Villans didn’t quite have the best of chances, with the majority of opportunities occurring at the opposite end. It was a fantastic beginning for the Villans when Jacob Ramsey played a one-two with Ollie Watkins after Kamara fed him and he ran into the box. Ramsey kept his composure and beat Coufal with ease before managing to send a left-footed shot past Areola and into the far corner to put Villa in front in just the eighth minute of the game.
Soon after, Villa were denied a quick-fire second goal. West Ham continued to struggle as they cheaply lost possession before the England striker Ollie Watkins played a corss for Rogers to tap in from close range, but the flag went up for Watkins’ initial run, but it was a ajor scare for Graham Potter’s side. Moments later, West Ham had their chance as Kudus managed to beat Tielemans with a smart touch, before playing it to Alvarez, who took his shot and it was blocked by Mings there.
Villa were just a few centimeters away from making it 2-0! After Coufal fouled Ramsey, the hosts were awarded a free-kick on the left-hand side. It was Tielemans delivery that was met by Ollie Watkins, but it bounced agonisingly wide. Both the sides had their chances in the first half but it was the hosts who managed to carry a 1-0 advantage into the second half.
A disappointing second half for Villans
As the second half began, Emerson cut back a high cross that Wan-Bissaka had hung up to the back post. With the goal at his mercy, Paqueta spun well and shot from directly in front, but missed the far post to spurn a great chance for leveller. Moments later, Konsa saved his goalie with a crucial block! Martinez clattered into Cash’s back and dropped the ball at Soler’s foot after coming out for Kudus’ cross from the right. From a sharp angle, Soler attempted to score, but Konsa was back there and blocked his shot saving Martinez’s blushes.
The new man Donyell Malen had his say moments later, when the Dutch international was right in the thick of things, cutting past two players before launching himself from the edge of the box, but Areola held on to that shot. However, just three minutes later West Ham managed to level things up. An unmarked Emerson suddenly appeared at the far post to head back across the face of goal and into the far corner. Alvarez delivered an inch-perfect cross into the box where he found his fullback as the former Chelsea man Emerson made it 1-1 in the 70th minute.
With both the sides getting their chances to score the winner, fast forward to the final moments of the game, In strange circumstances, the Hammers were denied a winning goal due to the linesman’s flag! From 20 yards out, Irving lined up a left-footed shot that Martinez hit low and spilled, landing it directly in front of an offside Soucek. As the West Ham players and bench celebrated, the referee gave Villa a free kick instead after Paqueta put in in the net. In the end, both the sides were wasteful with their chances as it remained 1-1 at Villa Park.
Aston Villa and West Ham played out a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Villa Park in their Premier League clash where both the sides were wasteful with their chances. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
