Second-half goals from Amadou Onana and Morgan Rogers saw Aston Villa come from behind to beat West Ham 2-1 in the Third Round of 2024-25 FA Cup.
Rogers netted a 76th minute winner from Ollie Watkins’ cutback pass as Villa marked their 150th anniversary celebratory match with a comeback victory to progress into the fourth round for a second consecutive season.
Amadou Onana had equalised in the 71st minute from Lukasz Fabianski’s spilled save of Ian Maatsen’s shot.
Lucas Paqueta had initially fired West Ham into a ninth-minute lead in their first game under new manager – Graham Potter, who had only been appointed yesterday (9 January) following Julen Lopetegui’s sacking.
Speaking post-match to ITV, Villa manager – Unai Emery was pleased to get the win but wasn’t impressed with another conceded goal.
“Happy, but we were trying to set an objective of not conceding an easy goal, but we did it early again.
“But we responded well. We didn’t concede chances again more or less. The players showed our wishes to do something in the competition.”
Villa will discover their fourth round opposition in the draw on Sunday 13 January live on BBC One in the UK from circa 5pm GMT, following the UK broadcaster’s coverage of Arsenal’s tie against reigning champions – Manchester United, although the draw will be delayed if that match goes to extra time and possibly penalties.
Despite having had just one day of training under new boss – Potter, West Ham quickly looked the more lively as they broke forward just over 40 seconds in but Paqueta curled wide of the top-right corner.
West Ham continued to press Villa and duly earned their reward in the ninth minute as Summerville met a cross and teed up Paqueta to rifle unmarked into the bottom-right corner, much to Potter’s delight at his Hammers’ energetic start.
The UK though is within the grip of freezing conditions and the sub-zero temperatures soon began to tell as the play became stop-start, during which West Ham’s Niclas Fullkrug was forced off with a hamstring injury whilst Villa’s Ross Barkley was substituted with a knock inside the opening 23 minutes.
Those chilly conditions suited West Ham more as the first half wore on but Edson Alvarez fired wide from a 28th-minute corner clearance, whilst Mohammed Kudus’ 34th-minute shot was saved by Robin Olsen as Villa struggled to get much of a clear-cut attacking foothold in the game before half-time.
Any hopes of a change in quality early in the second half didn’t materialise until Villa turned the screws in the 67th minute with Leon Bailey’s shot blocked, before Youri Tielemans fired wide of the bottom-left corner on the follow-up.
Maatsen saw a shot two minutes later saved by Lukasz Fabianski before Onana curled wide from a resulting set-piece, only for referee – Tim Robinson to incorrectly adjudge a deflection and award a second corner kick.
That decision ultimately gave Villa hope after Maatsen smashed a shot on goal which Fabianski fumbled for Onana to flick in on the rebound to restore parity.
That goal gave Villa more momentum and they turned the game around in the 76th minute after Watkins sprinted up the left, only to cut back for Rogers to turn into the near-left corner to put the hosts ahead for the first time in the game.
Villa eventually saw the game out despite late pressure from the Hammers as substitute, Danny Ings missed a last-gasp chance to force extra-time for the East-London visitors.
What’s Next?
Villa return to league action with a midweek trip to Everton on Wednesday 14 January at 7:30pm GMT.
West Ham will also be in midweek league action as they host Fulham in a London derby in Graham Potter’s first home game in charge at the London Stadium, albeit 24 hours earlier on Tuesday 14 January.
Teams
Aston Villa: Robin Olsen, Matty Cash (Nedeljkovic 72′), Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Ian Maatsen, Boubacar Kamara (Buendia 72′), Youri Tielemans, Leon Bailey (Ramsey 72′), Ross Barkley (Onana 23′), Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins
Substitutes: Lamare Bogarde, Emiliano Buendia, Bradley Burrowes, Lucas Digne, Joe Gauci, Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba, Amadou Onana, Kosta Nedeljkovic, Jacob Ramsey
West Ham: Lukasz Fabianski, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Konstantinos Mavropanos (Guilherme 85′), Max Kilman, Oliver Scarles (Cresswell 77′), Tomas Soucek, Edson Alvarez (Soler 85′), Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Paqueta, Crysencio Summerville (Coufal 46′), Niclas Fullkrug (Ings 15′)
Substitutes: Kaelan Casey, Vladimir Coufal, Aaron Cresswell, Wes Foderingham, Danny Ings, Andy Irving, Luis Guilherme, Guido Rodriguez, Carlos Soler
Referee – Tim Robinson
