Tielemans stars in Aston Villa win at West Ham | OneFootball

Aston Villa came back twice to claim a 3-2 win over West Ham United today to keep themselves in the Premier League title race today.

Villa conceded the earliest goal in the league this season but battled back through an own goal from Konstantinos Mavropanos and a Morgan Rogers brace to seal a ninth successive win.

While the performance wasn’t the best, several players stepped up when the Villans needed them, including Amadou Onana, Rogers, John McGinn and Youri Tielemans.

Rogers might get all the plaudits for bagging a double, but Tielemans was also influential in the comeback victory.

The Belgian playmaker grew into the game, bagging an assist and winning eight out of 14 duels. He made two recoveries and blocked two shots.

Tielemans’ performance earned him an 8/10 rating from Villa correspondent John Townley, who described his delivery for one of Rogers’ goals as ‘simply class’.

Villa’s win over West Ham was a statement

This was a win that spoke volumes about Villa’s maturity.

The Villans were forced to shuffle their back line, fielding a makeshift defence.

However, they still found a way to absorb pressure, ride out uncomfortable moments and strike decisively when it mattered most.

That ability to suffer, adapt and still take maximum points is often what separates contenders from pretenders.

There was no panic when they fell behind, no loss of belief when West Ham threatened to swing momentum again.

The Villains trusted their structure, their leaders and their match-winners. These are the kind of gritty, imperfect victories that quietly build title challenges

If Villa can continue grinding out results like this, even on off days and with key pieces missing, the teams around them will have to sit up and take notice.