Substitute Jhon Duran scored a late winner as Aston Villa opened their Premier League campaign with victory at West Ham.
Duran latched on to Jacob Ramsey’s pass and slotted the ball into the bottom corner with 11 minutes remaining, a few weeks after the striker was reportedly the subject of two failed transfer bids from the Hammers.
Andre Onana had opened the scoring minutes into his Aston Villa debut when the Belgium midfielder was left unmarked in the box to head home Youri Tielemans’ corner after four minutes.
West Ham got back into the contest before the break when Matty Cash was adjudged to have fouled Tomas Soucek after a tangle in the box.
Lucas Paqueta stepped up and slotted the resulting penalty into the bottom left corner with his stuttering run-up causing Emiliano Martinez to dive the wrong way.
However, Duran had the final say as Villa eventually made their dominance pay.
All is forgiven for Duran
Duran came on for England striker Ollie Watkins, who had looked sluggish after minimal pre-season training, with half an hour remaining and made the most important impact of all.
There have been reports, external throughout the summer that Duran was on his way to East London with personal terms agreed and a deal being discussed.
However, he has remained with Villa with his goal celebration indicated that he was planning to stay.
New siging Ian Maatsen had the ball on the left and found Jacob Ramsey, who played it into the path of Duran with his first-time effort flying past Hammers goalkeeper Alphonse Areola.
Morgan Rogers had a low strike well saved by Areola while John McGinn fired inches wide in a dominant first-half display from Villa before Duran’s goal secured a well-deserved three points.
–BBC
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