Aston Villa vs West Ham
Date: 03/02/2021
K/O: 20:15
Venue: Villa Park
Referee: Andy Madley
TV: BT Sport
Two of the most transformed sides this season face off on Wednesday night as Aston Villa host West Ham. The date was the 26th of July, 2020, and Aston Villa and West Ham had played out a one-all draw to secure 17th and 16th place in the Premier League respectively. Now only seven months on, both sides compete for the European spots, in what may be two of the most significant single-season transformations the Premier League has ever seen.
Aston Villa come into the tie three points behind their opponents, with two games in hand. A win could see them rise above the Hammers and into fifth, with goal difference a significant advantage for the West Midlands side. Villa enter the game off the back of their tenth clean sheet in 19 games, which came in an impressive away victory against Southampton. Ross Barkley scored the winner; however, Emi Martinez deserved the credit after several crucial saves to keep Villa ahead.
Villa’s superb turnaround this season can be credited to their vastly improved backline, second only to Manchester City in clean sheets. The addition of Martinez and Matty Cash, along with the continued evolution of Ezri Konsa, has patched the holes missing in last year’s struggling defence. They have provided the West Midlands outfit with a stable platform for them to build on up the pitch. The continued league-topping form of Jack Grealish, an emergence of a versatile set of in-form wingers, and the goal-scoring prowess of Ollie Watkins has seen Villa emerge as a complete package and a joy to watch.
Villa face a formidable opponent in West Ham on Wednesday. Though they suffered defeat in their last game, West Ham have picked up four wins in their previous six away games. Sitting in fifth, the Hammers will have extra motivation to keep Villa below them and stay in the top six. Fatigue looked like a real issue for Villa in the final stages of their game against Southampton, so Smith could make changes in midfield and attack.
West Ham travel to Villa Park in good form. Winning four of their last five, David Moyes side sit in a perfect position to mount a challenge for the Champions League places, a line nobody would have expected to hear only a few months ago. The Hammers have been excellent in all areas and look nothing like the struggling side we saw last year. What’s more impressive is Moyes’ ability to turn his West Ham side around with minimal investment and transfer activity, in contrast to Dean Smith at Aston Villa.
However, Moyes will be disappointed in West Ham’s last result, as they lost 3-1 to reigning champions Liverpool. Three second-half goals saw the Hammers struggle at home, not something we often see from the East London outfit. However, there are positives to take from the match, as West Ham held Liverpool for the first half, and looked the better side. Moyes stated that West Ham aren’t trying to chase Liverpool, and though disappointed, the Scot will aim for the game to be just a blip in their fine form record.
Coming into the tie, Moyes must decide whether he wants to introduce Jesse Lingard to his starting XI following a loan move from Manchester United. A fresh face in the West Ham lineup could invigorate the rest of the squad, as transfer activity has been limited in recent windows. Michail Antonio will look to continue his fine goalscoring form, though he may be afforded a rest if Moyes elects to manage the striker’s workload.
Team News
Aston Villa
Smith may be inclined to make changes to his side, as he has named a virtually unchanged side for their last four games, all played in the space of two weeks. Morgan Sanson could make his debut in midfield, whilst Trezeguet or Anwar El Ghazi could support in attack, following their fine spells of form earlier in the season.
West Ham
David Moyes will assess the fitness of Michail Antonio ahead of the trip to Villa Park. Jesse Lingard could start; however it is unlikely he will immediately dislodge the in-form attacking midfield trident of Bowen, Benrahma and Fornals.
Predicted Starting XIs
Aston Villa (4-3-3): Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Targett; Luiz, McGinn, Barkley; Grealish, Watkins, Traore
West Ham (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Coufal, Dawson, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Soucek, Rice; Bowen, Benrahma, Lingard; Antonio
Predicted Score: Aston Villa 2-2 West Ham
Having both performed well last weekend despite different results, this tie will be closely matched. West Ham will be pushing to return to their god form and to the top four, while Villa could use their extra quality in the final third to jump the Hammers in the table. The sides will most likely cancel each other out and I can see it ending in a two-all draw.
