Barclays Premier League
West Ham United v Aston Villa
Boleyn Ground
Wednesday 4 November 2009
7.45pm
Referee: Steve Bennett
Full-time - West Ham United 2-1 Aston Villa
94 mins - Get in there! The crowd are whistling as Villa launch the ball into the home penalty area. It hits a couple of bodies and bounces into Green's hands. He clears and Bennett blows his whistle. The crowd erupt! West Ham have a first home win of the season and are out of the bottom-three. Let's hope for a similar result on Sunday when Everton come to visit.
93 mins - GOAL! And they've got one! Hines shows persistence to latch on to Parker's low cross and stab the ball beyond Friedel's grasp.
93 mins - Not long to go now. Villa have gone one up-top, with Agbonlahor ploughing a lone furrow. It is West Ham who have the ball, though, and they are piling forward in search of a winner.
92 mins - Oooh! Green does well there. Young had picked up Da Costa's clearing header, skipped on to his right foot and fired in a low shot that the goalkeeper did well to push out for a corner. Young crosses and Da Costa, again, heads the ball out of danger.
91 mins - We're into the first of four added minutes and Young wins a corner off Spector. Villa will be in no rush to take this.
90 mins - He might, you know. The new arrival combines well with Hines who wins a corner. The Chilean then ruins all the good work by taking the corner short and gifting Villa possession.
89 mins - Zola makes his final change, replacing Franco with Luis Jimenez for the final few moments. Can the South American conjure up a winner for the hosts?
88 mins - Good save from Friedel there to deny Noble. The midfielder had cut inside from the left and let fly from around 25 yards, forcing the American into a plunging stop.
87 mins - Martin O'Neill makes a defensive tactical change, replacing Carew with right-back Luke Young.
86 mins - Noble curls the ball in and Villa clear. Parker picks it up, but his lunging shot flies well wide.
85 mins - Villa are down to ten men after Beye sees a second yellow for bringing down Spector. Unfortunately for West Ham, they had a four-on-four break inside the Villa penalty area when Bennett stopped play. Instead of playing an advantage, the referee chose to bring play back with the Hammers in a very threatening position. Instead they have a free-kick eight yards outside the box.
85 mins - Young's free-kick drops into the penalty area but Agbonlahor can only divert his half-volley well over the top.
84 mins - Franco is the next man to be booked. He gives the ball away and sees yellow after bringing down Warnock as he tries to win it back
80 mins - Hines again! This time forcing Friedel to save at his near post after picking up a pass from Parker. The Hammers are really pushing for a winner, but the resulting Noble corner is headed clear.
78 mins - Hines comes agonisingly close to his first league goal again, latching on to Collison's through ball, but dragging his left-foot shot just past the far post. West Ham have been the better side this half. Can they turn their possession into a winning goal?
76 mins - Junior Stanislas has replaced Tomkins on the touchline. He has already netted one late goal this season. Can he be the hero again, should he be given the chance?
74 mins - More strong running from Hines wins a corner off Dunne that Friedel cannot prevent. Noble crosses and the ball hits Sidwell and bounces out for another corner.
73 mins - Great harrying from Hines, Franco and Behrami sees the England U21 man win the ball back for the Hammers. He shoots but the ball flies wide.
72 mins - Zola is perched high on his seat in the dugout chatting to first-team coach Steve Clarke. Is he considering a third change?
70 mins - A shooting chance for Franco from 18 yards, but the Mexican fires too high following good work from Spector and Collison down the left-hand side.
68 mins - Another yellow card, this time for Petrov for a lunge on Parker.
67 mins - West Ham are definitely on top now. Hines runs at the Villa defence and wins a corner. Noble crosses and Collins outjumps Upson. The ball falls to Collison, who takes a touch and drills a low shot straight at Friedel.
66 mins - The Hammers win a chance wide on the right when Warnock fouls Behrami. Noble crosses and Beye clears. Collison retreives the ball on the left but his cross is too long.
64 mins - Faubert again, this time cutting inside Warnock and dinking the ball in low. It hits Sidwell and Dunne before eluding Parker's out-stretched boot. From the resulting corner, Da Costa makes a nuisance of himself before stabbing the ball wide of the target from 12 yards.
63 mins - The home side are getting up a bit of a head of steam here. Faubert twice breaks down the right, the second time firing in a low cross that Collins can only belt into the stands.
59 mins - Da Costa slices an Agbonlahor cross behind for another Villa corner. The Birmingham-born forward takes himself and Da Costa heads half-clear. The ball falls to Petrov, whose drive is deflected behind for another corner. Agbonlahor crosses again and Green wins a free-kick.
58 mins - Gianfranco Zola only has one substitution left to make, but he has three potential replacements warming up on the touchline in Alessandro Diamanti, Luis Jimenez and James Tomkins.
56 mins - Reo-Coker forces Spector into conceding a corner. The goalscorer Young takes wide on the Villa right and Da Costa powers his header clear.
54 mins - Warnock is going to need some treatment after a challenge from Behrami. It appears to be his left shoulder. After a few moments, though, the Liverpool-born defender is able to carry on without the need for any medical assistance.
52 mins - GOAL! That was some strike from Young, who picked the ball up wide on the left and cut inside Behrami before curling an amazing shot into the far, top corner. Green got a touch, but that was nigh-on unstoppable.
51 mins - Parker is booked for a foul. Young takes the free-kick and Green holds the ball in front of his face. The penalty save has really brought the crowd to life.
50 mins - Green saves! The England goalkeeper guesses right and plunges to his left, if that makes sense, pushing Young's shot around the post for a corner. Young crosses and, after a spot of pinball, Green falls on the loose ball. Cheers all round for England's No1.
49 mins - Villa have started quite well here, and Agbonlahor forces a corner. The ball comes over and is headed clear. Villa get the ball back into the area where Da Costa leaps high in the air and heads clear. After a pause, it emerges that Bennett has awarded another penalty for Da Costa's challenge, which was innocuous but did see him catch Collins with a stray boot.
47 mins - Da Costa gets back to clear a long ball forward and punts the ball over the East Stand and into Trinity Road, earning a loud cheer.
46 mins - Villa get us back underway.
A half-time change from Villa, who apparently also had Young booked in the melee following the penalty decision. Nigel Reo-Coker is on for Heskey.
Half-time - West Ham United 1-0 Aston Villa
48 mins - Referee Bennett blows for half-time and the home side leave the field to a loud cheer. Collins is booked before making his way down the tunnel, presumably for dissent.
47 mins - GOAL! Noble belts the penalty into the roof of the net and West Ham lead!
46 mins - We're into the first of two minutes of added-time and West Ham have a penalty! Franco lays in Hines and he is bundled over by Habib Beye no more than six yards from goal. Beye is booked and Noble is lining up the penalty.
45 mins - Hines injects a bit of urgency into proceedings as he runs at Collins and gets into the penalty area, but his cross is cleared. The Hammers continue to press, but Hines' follow-up shot is blocked.
42 mins - Young cuts inside Spector and runs along the edge of the area, where he is felled by Parker. Again, this free-kick is in a very threatening area. Warnock's effort is a bit wayward and flies into the Bobby Moore Stand.
39 mins - The big Norwegian threatens again. Turning Da Costa and shooting low, and Green dives on the ball at the second attempt.
37 mins - Carew appears to have got the better of Da Costa, only for the Portuguese to get back in and tackle him. Upson completes the clearance.
35 mins - Another corner for Villa, this time when the ball flicks off the head of Parker. Warnock again takes wide on the Villa right with his left foot, but referee Bennett sees and infringement and blows play dead. He has a quick word with Behrami and Carew before Warnock re-takes the flag-kick.
34 mins - Another corner for the visitors as Agbonlahor smacks the ball against Upson. Warnock curls a decent ball in and Franco clears at the near post.
32 mins - Hines is on. Cole goes straight down the tunnel for further treatment.
31 mins - Hines is going to be Cole's replacement. I am not going to speculate over the nature of Cole's injury, but we will try and get word from the club's backroom staff as soon as possible.
30 mins - Cole is going to have to go off here. He was chasing a deep cross from Faubert when he pulled up and immediately signalled to the bench.
27 mins - Superb play from Villa. Warnock breaks down the left before the ball is worked all the way across to Young on the right flank. He curls in a delicious cross but Carew can only glance his header over the bar. West Ham need to keep possession for a period of time here. They do just that and Noble is unlucky to be thwarted by good defensive play from Agbonlahor.
24 mins - Scott Parker puts his body on the line to block Young's free-kick. The ball flies out for a throw-in, while Parker takes a moment to recover! From the throw-in, Behrami attempts to clear and Villa make a tentative penalty claim for handball, but referee Bennett gives nothing. Not too many complaints from the away team, anyway.
23 mins - Da Costa heads Young's corner clear, but the ball is worked back out to the winger, who is fouled by Behrami. This is a dangerous position.
22 mins - Another minute, another chance... Agbonlahor breaks into the box and shoots left-footed, forcing Green to help the ball over the top.
21 mins - Cole breaks an holds off Sidwell before crossing right-footed, but the ball is inches too high for the leaping Franco. It has been a lively start here, to say the least.
20 mins - Carew gets at Faubert and the Frenchman accidentally puts the ball behind for a corner. Again, Young takes, Da Costa hacks clear and Stiliyan Petrov lashes a fierce volley towards goal that is deflected towards the top corner before Green instinctively sticks his hand out to divert the ball over the crossbar. That was a world-class save that Capello is sure to have enjoyed. The resulting corner is overhit and West Ham clear.
19 mins - Spector wins a free-kick in a threatening position wide on the left. Noble takes the free-kick but it does not clear the first defender.
17 mins - A little warning for the Hammers, there. Sidwell lofts a hopeful ball into the penalty area, where John Carew outjumps Matthew Upson, but cannot get sufficient power on his downward header.
16 mins - Behrami stabs the corner clear and Franco does superbly to hold the ball up, earning a decent round of applause for his efforts. West Ham nearly benefit, pinning Villa deep inside their own half before winning possession back through Collison. He finds Noble, who jinks inside before forcing Friedel into a decent save low to his right.
15 mins - Agbonlahor forces Faubert into conceding a second corner to the Villans. Young wanders across to take.
13 mins - Valon Behrami's control lets him down in midfield, but he snaps straight back in and wins the ball back. That sort of play will rouse the home supporters.
12 mins - Cole does superbly down the right to control a long punt from Manuel Da Costa, holding off two challenges to prompt an attack that ends with Scott Parker driving a low shot straight at Brad Friedel from 25 yards.
10 mins - Ilunga's injury appears to have taken the wind out of West Ham's sails a bit here. Villa are on the offensive inside the hosts' half and have been for the past couple of minutes. A foul by Sidwell releases the pressure.
8 mins - Villa try and take advantage while West Ham are down to ten men, forcing Scott Parker to concede a corner. Before it can be taken, Jonathan Spector comes on for the injured Ilunga. Young curls in a vicious corner that somehow evades everybody and bounces out for a goal kick. That was a let-off.
7 mins - Herita Ilunga looks in trouble here. He attempts to latch on to Guille Franco's pass and appears to tweak his hamstring. He is led off for treatment on the touchline.
6 mins - Finally a bit of a lull in the action. To let you all know how the teams are lining up, Villa have Emile Heskey wide on the left. West Ham have the same diamond formation as they used at Sunderland, with Noble at the point.
4 mins - It's a chance a minute here as Gabriel Agbonlahor lets fly from 25 yards, but his shot is weak and is easily gathered by Green.
3 mins - Fine defending from Richard Dunne to thwart Cole after the England man had turned him on the right and threatened to break clear into the penalty area.
2 mins - Another shooting chance for the Hammers. Robert Green's long clearance is headed straight up in the air by Stephen Warnock and Carlton Cole elects to volley the ball first-time from 30 yards and it flies wide.
1 min - West Ham start strongly, but neither Jack Collison nor Mark Noble can get their shot away inside the Villa penalty area. Noble turned on to his right foot rather then swinging his left and his effort was blocked.
7.45pm - We're underway and West Ham are pressing from the off.
7.44pm - England manager Fabio Capello and his assistant Franco Baldini are among the spectators here tonight. They will watch West Ham kick-off attacking the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand end of the ground.
7.43pm - Both sides are out on the pitch and going through their final pre-match warm-ups. The two teams are read out, with the home team receiving a loud welcome. The returning James Collins also receives a good reception on his return to the east end.
Good evening from the Boleyn Ground.
Gianfranco Zola makes three changes to the side that drew 2-2 at Sunderland. Julien Faubert replaces Jonathan Spector at right-back, Manuel Da Costa is in for James Tomkins, while Scott Parker returns in place of the suspended Radoslav Kovac.
Aston Villa show two changes to their starting XI with Habib Beye in for the suspended Carlos Cuellar in defence and John Carew taking the place of the injured James Milner up front. Former Hammer James Collins starts, with ex-West Ham United captain Nigel Reo Coker on the bench.
West Ham United: Green, Faubert, Da Costa, Upson, Ilunga (Spector 8), Behrami, Parker, Noble, Collison, Franco, Cole (Hines 32)
Subs: Kurucz, Tomkins, Jimenez, Stanislas, Diamanti
Aston Villa: Friedel, Beye, Dunne, Collins, Warnock, Sidwell, Ashley Young, Petrov, Heskey (Reo-Coker 46), Agbonlahor, Carew
Subs: Guzan, Luke Young, Shorey, Albrighton, Delph, Delfouneso