SM
Liverpool vs. Villa: 18 hrs 22 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Match Analysis: West Ham United 1-0 Aston Villa

:Headline: Match Analysis: West Ham United 1-0 Aston Villa: ID:40815: from db_amp
Sports Mole takes a closer look at today's Premier League clash between West Ham United and Aston Villa at Upton Park.

West Ham United got their Premier League campaign off to a good start with a 1-0 home win against Aston Villa this afternoon.

Sports Mole examines whether the Midlands team deserved to come away pointless.

West Ham statistics:
Shots
7
On target 1
Possession 33%
Corners 6
Fouls 17

Aston Villa statistics:
Shots 12
On target 1
Possession 67%
Corners 4
Fouls 8

Was the result fair?

Yes. Aston Villa started brightly, but West Ham settled into the match and took control midway through the first half. Kevin Nolan's goal came five minutes before half time and that put the home side firmly in control. They took their foot off the gas slightly in the final 20 minutes. Villa huffed and puffed but they could not create even a decent chance at goal.

West Ham's performance

West Ham looked steady in defence, which is not something that you would normally associate with the Hammers. It is, however, something that you expect from a Sam Allardyce team. They took the chance when it presented itself and looked comfortable in defending that lead. Hammers fans will be well pleased with the three points, but they will know that there is plenty of room for improvement.

Aston Villa's performance

Villa were quite poor today. It looked as if they might be up for it in the first 20 minutes, but their crisp passing became sloppy and they gave away a string of free kicks in areas from which West Ham could launch the ball into the box. Darren Bent hardly had a kick and looked completely isolated. Steven Ireland tried to pull the strings, but with no success.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Mohamed Diame: The 25-year-old ran his socks off on his debut for the club. He faded slightly as the match wore on, but he had put in a great shift. Other notable performances came from James Collins, who was a rock at the back, and Ricardo Vaz Te. However, I have opted for Diame, as he was a real handful for Villa.

Referee performance

Mike Dean had a decent game. The only point up for debate is the goal, as there were suspicions of offside. The replays showed that it was very close, but the correct decision was made, as the ball had come off Ciaran Clark last. There were a lot of fouls given in the match, but the managers should look to curb their players' reckless challenges before blaming the referee in this match.

Biggest gaffe of the game

It wasn't really a game of gaffes, to be fair. Carlton Cole spurned the best chance when he got his head to Matt Taylor's second-half free kick, but guided his effort wide. If you want to count all of Villa's misplaced passes as gaffes, then there are hundreds of examples to choose from.

What next?

West Ham: The Hammers face a trip to Swansea next Saturday, but will no doubt have to improve going forward if they are to take anything from the game. Today's defensive performance will give them hope of grabbing a result.

Aston Villa: Everton roll up to Villa Park next Saturday and Paul Lambert will know that a big improvement is sorely needed. Their passing was sloppy and they had no teeth going forward. It is going to be a tough week of training for the Villa players, I feel.

amp_article__40815 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2012-08-18 20:52:39:
html db last update - 2012-08-18 20:52:39 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .