West Ham United welcomed Aston Villa to the London Olympic Stadium in a fierce match in the 1st round of the English top flight. In this match, both sides are eager to start the new season with a win.
Aston Villa quickly got into the swing of things at the start of the first half, showing a strong desire to attack. In the 15th minute, the Villa took the lead through a subtle corner kick, with Onana leaping high in the box, overpowering the defenders with a header that gave the Villa the lead, his first goal since joining the Villa, and the stadium was instantly abuzz with excitement. West Ham United then tried to launch a counter-attack and Leon Bailey had a good chance on the left, but his shot from a narrow angle regrettably hit the post and bounced out, missing the chance to equalize.
Not to be outdone, West Ham United then stepped up their attack and were awarded a penalty kick in the 30th minute. Sauchek was infringed in the opposition box and the referee pointed decisively to the penalty spot. Paqueta stepped up and calmly assisted, kicked and scored to equalize the score at 1-1. This goal not only gave West Ham United a renewed hope, but also ignited the passion of the home fans.
The match resumed and became more intense in the second half. In the 60th minute, Villa broke the deadlock again, Ramsey sent a precise pass from the side, Dolan received it in the penalty area and pushed the ball into the goal, giving Villa a 2-1 lead again. After this goal, the Villa team's morale was boosted, while West Ham United looked a bit anxious.
As the game entered the closing stages, West Ham United went all out in search of an equalizer. In stoppage time, Saucheck had a chance to shoot from outside the box, but his shot went over the crossbar, missing the final chance to equalize. With the referee's whistle, the match was over and West Ham United suffered a 1-2 defeat against Aston Villa, opening the new season in the black.
