Aston Villa drew against West Ham United at London Stadium and ended a five-match Premier League skid against the Irons, with the in-form Ollie Watkins scoring his sixth goal in seven matches and World Cup champion Emi Martinez impressing between the sticks.
The point claimed means Villa close the gap on tenth-placed Chelsea to just two points, also only four points behind Brighton & Hove Albion in European contention, though the Seagulls have contested two fewer matches.
With creative midfielder Said Benrahma in inspired fettle, journalist Toby Cudworth waxing lyrical over the “absolutely brilliant” performance, Unai Emery’s outfit had their work cut out to prevent defeat, with the Algerian indeed restoring parity shortly after the Villa opener.
There was a level of resilience to Aston Villa’s play, while several players shone with their creative flair, and among those impressing: Alex Moreno.
How did Moreno perform against West Ham?
Signed from Real Betis for £13m in January, Moreno forged an enthralling, if imperfect display against the Hammers.
From an attacking standpoint, the left-back dazzled and proved why his inclusion will often breed goals, with an exquisite cross finding the goalscorer Ollie Watkins to push the visitors into an early lead.
One former Birmingham Live writer even went as far as to say that the 28-year-old has the “x-factor”, such is the resounding nature of his enterprising work.
Birmingham Live’s Gregg Evans dubbed the marauder a “real threat”, and there is a discernible impact on his teammates when he is provided the platform to inject his flair into the fray.
As per Sofascore, Moreno recorded an impressive match rating of 7.4, with left-winger Jacob Ramsey earning a 7.3 rating; on the alternating side, Leon Bailey’s lowly 6.1 rating was hardly bettered by right-back Matty Cash’s, with a real difference in the effectiveness and fluidity of the respective flanks.
Having made 61 touches, Moreno was withdrawn after 64 minutes, but during his time on the pitch he won six of his 11 ground duels, completed 84% of his passes to complement his assist, made three key passes and completed four of his six dribbles.
Granted, defensively Moreno did not look assured, and while enjoying a fascinating battle with Jarrod Bowen until his substitution, did look to have lost the fight against the dynamic winger after initially impressing.
Nevertheless, his offensive output had a melodious tune, and will have indeed been music to Emery’s ears as the Spanish manager looks to steer his side toward a top-half finish.
Having provided a brilliant assist for Watkins’ goal – undoubtedly the hero of today – Moreno is certainly demonstrating his worth as a creative outlet, and if he can tighten up his defensive game the Lions could wield a deadly force down the left flank.
