Aston Villa and their midfielder Douglas Luiz, author of a double, got the better of West Ham (4-1) on Sunday to come within one point of the podium, in fifth place after nine days. The team led by Unai Emery, the second best attack in the championship behind Newcastle, now has 19 points, one less than Liverpool and Tottenham, and two less than Manchester City and Arsenal.
Tottenham can, however, widen the gap and regain first place if they succeed on Monday (9:00 p.m.) against Fulham at the end of the day. As is often the case, Aston Villa posed a constant threat to the opposing goal, with a team including Nicolo Zaniolo, at the heart of an investigation for illicit sports betting, and the usual French starters Lucas Digne, Boubacar Kamara and Moussa Diaby.
The striker remained silent for the sixth game in a row, but not Douglas Luiz. The Brazilian central midfielder, with a double (30th, 52nd from the penalty spot), has now scored in six consecutive matches at Villa Park, a series that began last season on May 13 against Tottenham. West Ham’s surge, more dangerous after half-time, resulted in the reduction of Jarrod Bowen’s score (56th, 2-1).
But Aston Villa took cover thanks to Ollie Watkins who, after a body feint in front of Kurt Zouma, cleared Alphonse Areola’s top corner (74th, 3-1). Newcomers Youri Tielemans and Leon Bailey, passer and scorer (89th, 4-1), finished the job. West Ham are ninth with one point less than Manchester United and two more than Chelsea and Crystal Palace.