Julen Lopetegui made a disappointing start to life as West Ham manager as his side were beaten 2-1 at home by Aston Villa on the Premier League’s opening weekend.
Villa took the lead after just four minutes at the London Stadium on Saturday evening when new signing Amadou Onana headed home from a corner, but West Ham were handed a reprieve when Matty Cash conceded a penalty for a foul on Tomas Soucek, which Lucas Paqueta slid home.
But West Ham were made to pay for lax defending late on when substitute and former transfer target Jhon Duran finished off a smart move to earn Villa all three points.
Standard Sport’s Dom Smith was on hand to rate the West Ham players’ performances…
Alphonse Areola 6
Made a number of saves he ought to have made, including from Morgan Rogers in the first half.
Vladimir Coufal 4
Caught out of position by coming too centrally, allowing Lucas Digne and John McGinn to exploit the space down the left. And Duran got through late on, too, thanks to Coufal’s poor positioning.
Max Kilman 7
A really promising debut from the ex-Wolves man, even if those around him in West Ham’s defence didn’t cover themselves in glory. Cut out a few passes in behind and was alert throughout.
Konstantinos Mavropanos 6
Couple of early clearances stopped Aston Villa going two up after Onana’s headed opener. Solid enough but unlikely to remain a starter this season.
Emerson 6
Looked to go forward when in enough space, but not the left-back’s most influential match. Played Duran onside as the Villa man came close late on before scoring.
Tomas Soucek 5
Won the penalty from Cash but was off the pace and squandered a decent chance in the second period. Missed a glaring chance in the dying seconds.
Guido Rodriguez 6
A solid if unspectacular competitive debut for the Argentine, who can expect a fair amount of game-time this season under Lopetegui.
Jarrod Bowen 5
Got tight to Aston Villa players as they queued up outside the West Ham box in the first half. Offensively, though, was limited and offered very little.
Mohammed Kudus 7
A bright display from the Ghanaian, whose close control and technical footwork had the beating of Aston Villa every time he got the ball.
Lucas Paqueta 6
Booked for a challenge on Youri Tielemans, born out of frustration. Worked tirelessly until James Ward-Prowse replaced him with just over 15 minutes to go, dispatching his penalty very well.
Michail Antonio 6
Defended so poorly at the early corner as Onana got away from him and planted the opener past Areola. Nodded over with a presentable chance halfway through the second 45. Worked hard.
Substitutes
James Ward-Prowse (Paqueta, 74’) 5
Made a limited impact from the bench.
Niclas Fullkrug (Antonio, 73’) 6
Steady debut from the German.
Crysencio Summerville (Bowen, 74’) 7
Only had 15 minutes to make an impression but did just that. So lively.
Danny Ings (Rodriguez, 85’) 6
Denied by Martinez with a late header from Summerville’s cross.
Jean-Clair Todibo (Coufal, 85’) N/A
Came on late on for his debut.
Not used: Fabianski, Cresswell, Wan-Bissaka, Irving.
