Graham Potter must have felt like the unluckiest man in the Midlands as he watched nearly two years’ work go up in smoke in five minutes.
Out of the game since being sacked by Chelsea in April 2023, Potter has been planning his return ever since and Lucas Paqueta’s first-half strike looked like giving Potter a debut win as West Ham boss.
Then everything changed. From a corner that should probably not have been given, Amadou Onana equalised for Villa and Morgan Rogers scored the winner soon afterwards. Dire in the first half, Villa could celebrate their 150th anniversary with victory. By full-time West Ham’s mood was as black as the commemorative shirts Villa wore to mark the occasion.
Though there was plenty to encourage Potter after replacing Julen Lopetegui, his side left Villa Park with nothing but injuries to Niclas Fullkrug and Crysencio Summerville to show for their efforts.
Potter had turned down offers from so many clubs since being sacked by Chelsea that it was tempting to wonder whether he would ever return to the dugout.
Yet back he has come and even though he selected eight of the 11 players who started the 4-1 defeat at Manchester City – Julen Lopetegui’s final game in charge – it was easy to see the hand of the new manager despite a single training session.
Graham Potter’s West Ham debut ended in defeat as the newly=appointed head coach watched his side agonisingly eliminated from the FA Cup
Morgan Rogers (right) completed Aston Villa’s comeback in front of a raucous home crowd
West Ham were knocked out of the FA Cup as Aston Villa fought back in the second-half
The Hammers lined up in a back five out of possession but switched to a back four when they had it, which bamboozled Villa early on. Perhaps mindful that Villa were using this match to celebrate their 150th anniversary, boss Unai Emery picked a strong team, with Lucas Digne the only regular starter he decided to leave on the bench.
Yet Villa simply never got going. The visitors’ greater energy was apparent inside the first minute, when Crysencio Summerville burst in off the right flank and found Paqueta in space. The Brazilian took aim from 25 yards and his effort swerved past the post at the last moment, with Robin Olsen beaten.
Olsen was deputising for Emiliano Martinez, who was ruled out with a minor injury. Whenever Martinez does not play, Villa look a little more nervous at the back, and they duly fell behind in the ninth minute.
The home side lost their shape, allowing Mohammed Kudus to send Summerville scampering clear again on the right. When his cut-back found Paqueta, the Hammers’ No10 produced a precise finish that wrongfooted Olsen and found the bottom corner.
On a freezing evening, Hammers forward Niclas Fullkrug hobbled off with less than 15 minutes gone. The German, who cost £27million last summer, has already missed three months of the campaign with an Achilles injury and looks set for another spell on the sidelines.
Villa also lost a player not long afterwards as Ross Barkley decided he could not continue and was replaced by Amadou Onana. Ten minutes before the break, Kudus tried his luck from distance and though Olsen spilled the effort, no West Ham player was close enough to capitalise.
Emery’s men had been awful up to this point. Simple passes were going astray and oft-rehearsed moves breaking down. Youri Tielemans overhit a five-yard pass to Bailey, conceding a goal-kick and causing Emery to bury his face in his hands.
And when Tielemans and Bailey did combine successfully, there was nobody closing in at the far post when the Jamaican’s low cross eluded Ollie Watkins. No wonder there was a smattering of boos when the half-time whistle sounded.
Villa midfielder Amadou Onana (middle) sparked the hosts comeback in the 71st minute
On a freezing evening, Hammers forward Niclas Fullkrug hobbled off with less than 15 minutes gone
Unai Emery watched his side come from behind to secure a victory that extends their FA Cup stay
The Hammers suffered a blow at the start of the second half when Summerville, who had been excellent before the break, was replaced by Coufal. The Dutchman had been holding his hamstring during the latter stages of the first period.
Villa continued to be untidy. In space inside the box, Ian Maatsen took a wild first-time thrash at Onana’s lofted pass and the travelling fans jeered with delight.
Even Morgan Rogers, Villa’s best player this term, was struggling to lift the mood. He took a fresh air shot one moment and fired Bailey’s pass into the Holte End the next. In between times, the Villa attacker tried to play in Watkins, who was outmuscled too easily by Konstantinos Mavropanos.
These are tough times for Watkins. In the side only because Jhon Duran is suspended, the England forward was labouring.
At this rate, Duran will be straight back in the team when his suspension is complete, with or without the interest from Paris St Germain. The Holte End try to gee Watkins along with a few supportive chants but by the hour mark, these had made little impact.
Villa players wore a one-off kit that featured no sponsors and celebrated the club’s 150-year anniversary
These are tough times for Villa striker Watkins who is struggling to find his usual goalscoring form
Maatsen was trying his best to turn the tide. When his well-struck volley was headed clear by Max Kilman and rebounded into the path of Kudus, the Dutchman chased back 70 yards to stop the Hammers winger making the most of the handy bounce. Kilman was there again to block Bailey’s shot moments later and Tielemans failed to strike the loose ball cleanly. Watkins prodded tentatively at Matty Cash’s low cross as slowly Villa built momentum.
The impressive Edson Alvarez charged down Tielemans’ drive and Lukasz Fabianski was finally forced into a save when he pushed away Maatsen’s fizzing effort.
Eventually Villa made their pressure count – though they should never have been awarded the corner that brought it as Onana’s shot appeared to go out of play without touching a West Ham player. Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa combined to tee up Maatsen and when Fabianski could not hold his shot, Onana forced it over the line.
The second followed five minutes later. Substitute Emi Buendia sent Watkins racing into space and Rogers’ clever movement bought him the room to turn the ball home at the near post. Villa’s substitutes were making all the running and soon afterwards another, Jacob Ramsey, hit the post from 20 yards.
