West Ham United v Aston Villa
Premier League, London Stadium, Sunday March 17 2024, 2pm GMT
West Ham United welcome Unai Emery’s Aston Villa to London Stadium on Sunday afternoon as they return to Premier League action, looking to stretch their unbeaten league run to four matches.
Having overturned a one-goal deficit against SC Freiburg to progress to the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday, David Moyes’ charges are set to play their fourth game in ten days on 17 March, with kick-off set for 2pm.
Aston Villa arrive in the capital full of confidence, having progressed to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League, defeating Ajax 4-0.
The sides last met in October in the reverse fixture at Villa Park, where the hosts prevailed with a comfortable 4-1 victory, though the Hammers were previously unbeaten in the last ten meetings between the sides.
The Irons remain in seventh ahead of Sunday’s clash, while Aston Villa are fourth, currently occupying a UEFA Champions League spot.
Tickets...
Tickets for this sold out game are still available on the Ticket Exchange, with Season Ticket Holders who cannot attend this fixture relisting their seats for other supporters to buy. Click here to check availability or relist.
Travel…
There is no planned disruption to TfL Underground services on the Jubilee and Central lines, though there are set to be part closures on Elizabeth line, Overground and Docklands Light Railway services. Supporters utilising these lines are highly recommended to check their routes before departure.
Similarly, there are disruptions on the c2c and Greater Anglia mainline services, as well as the Southeastern network that serves Stratford International.
Stratford and Stratford City Bus Stations are located in close proximity to Stratford Station. Buses that run to these stations are numbers: 25, 86, 97, 104, 108, 158, 241, 257, 262, 276, 308, 425, 473, D8.
Supporters using public transport are advised to check their journeys before they travel, using resources such as TfL’s Journey Planner and the TfL Go app. Supporters may also wish to visit the National Rail website if travelling on the rail network.
There is no parking available at London Stadium. Restrictions will be in place and enforced in the local area.
How To Follow…
Sunday’s 2pm kick-off will NOT be broadcast live in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League’s international broadcast partners.
If you live outside the UK, click here for details of Premier League listings in your territory.
You can follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app, and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle on our website and social media.
Live audio commentary will be available in the UK on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra, and worldwide on our official website and app.
Official Programme…
At 116 pages, and just £4 per issue, West Ham United’s 2023/24 Official Programme represents superb value for money for supporters wanting exclusive interviews, attention-grabbing opinions and eye-catching photographs, plus the regular news, columns, statistics and insightful content from across all areas of the Club.
Sunday’s issue includes an in-depth interview and analysis of Vladimír Coufal, features with Mohammed Kudus and boyhood Hammers fan and former midfielder Lee Bowyer, while there are also chats with Club legend Ray Stewart and Nigel Reo-Coker.
With Academy content focusing on talented youngster Jacob Knightbridge, who has recently spent time training with the first team at Rush Green, the latest from our women’s team, plus history, puzzles, statistics and the lowdown on our opponents from Villa Park, the Official Programme is packed full of content for you!
Click here to order your copy now!
Team News…
The Hammers are likely to have a near-full squad available for Sunday’s Premier League clash.
A check will have to be made on Emerson, who has missed the last two games with a groin issue, while Maxwel Cornet has been absent in recent weeks with a hamstring injury and won't be available.
Villa, meanwhile, saw top goalscorer Ollie Watkins forced off through injury against Ajax on Thursday night. Jacob Ramsey is nearing a return, although John McGinn is suspended after last week’s red card against Spurs.
Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia and Boubacar Kamara are long-term absentees for Sunday’s visitors.
Opposition...
Since Unai Emery took over at Villa Park little over 17 months ago, Aston Villa have only gone on an upward trajectory, and fans will be dreaming once again of reaching the heights of the 1982 European Cup-winning side.
When Emery was appointed on 24 October 2022 as manager, replacing Steven Gerrard in the hotseat, he joined a Villa side that was devoid of confidence and lacking direction, sat two places and just one point above the Premier League relegation zone.
Now, they’re perched in the UEFA Champions League places, are in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League after securing a return to continental competition for the first time in 13 years, and only Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool have secured more points since the Spaniard took over.
Prior to his arrival in B6, Emery helped build La Liga side Villareal into one of Spain’s most successful clubs. They hadn’t won anything until Emery arrived, and he guided them to the 2021 Europa League title, their first, his fourth. Timing is everything in football and Emery returned to England to complete some unfinished business in the Premier League, and now he’s beginning to show why he’s one of the very best.
The rapid progress at Villa is testament to Emery’s unique coaching style, and what makes it all the more impressive is that he has done it with the squad at his disposal. They recruited smartly last summer, with the likes of Belgian international Youri Tielemans joining from Leicester City, while the arrivals of Pau Torres, Moussa Diaby, and Clément Lenglet have helped yield them into of the most exciting sides in the top flight.
Villa were regarded as genuine title contenders at the halfway point of the Premier League season, when they were just one point off the top table, though four defeats since, the concession of too many goals, and several injury issues look to have diminished those outside hopes, however, the prospect of Champions League football at Villa Park next season is still a real possibility.
English striker Ollie Watkins is their most potent goal threat - with his 16 strikes placing him second in the Premier League standings - but as mentioned previously, he is a doubt for Sunday’s clash after being withdrawn before half-time in their Conference League win over Ajax.
Previous Meetings...
West Ham United and Aston Villa meet in the Premier League for the 50th time on Sunday.
Aston Villa ended an eight-year wait for victory over West Ham when the sides met in the reverse fixture at Villa Park in October, winning 4-1, though the recent records are firmly in the Hammers’ favour.
Pablo Fornals got the only goal at Villa Park last season, while Saïd Benrahma’s penalty cancelled out Ollie Watkins’ opener as the two sides battled out a 1-1 draw at London Stadium.
We’ve also recorded 2-1, 4-1, 3-1 and 2-1 victories over the Villans over the last five years.
Our best-ever result at Villa Park was a 5-1 First Division victory scored in April 1927, when Vic Watson (two), Stan Earle, Joseph Johnson and Jimmy Ruffell shared the visitors’ goals.
Overall, our biggest top-flight win over Villa came in August 1958, when Ted Fenton’s newly-promoted Hammers thrashed their opponents 7-2 in the First Division at the Boleyn Ground, where Vic Keeble, John Dick and Malcolm Musgrove each scored twice.
Match Officials...
Referee: Jarred Gillett
Assistant Referees: Darren Cann and Akil Howson
Fourth Official: Sam Allison
VAR: Tony Harrington
Assistant VAR: Nick Greenhalgh
West Ham return to Premier League action three days after Thursday's Freiburg fixture, at home to Aston Villa, with Jarred Gillett having been confirmed as the referee for that game.
The 37-year-old has been a part of Professional Game Match Officials Limited’s (PGMOL) Select Group One since the start of the 2021/22 season, after establishing himself in his native Australia and joining Select Group 2 in England in 2019.
He has 40 Premier League games under his belt, including four Hammers fixtures. Three of those came in the 2022/23 campaign, most recently a 1-0 win away at Fulham little under a year ago.
This term has seen Gillett referee in the English top flight on 14 occasions, as well as twice apiece in UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying and UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying.
He also served as the Video Assistant Referee during West Ham’s 3-0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier in 2023/24, just before Christmas.
For more on Sunday's officials, click here.
