(Credit: Imago)

Richie Mills

Tue 24 March 2026 7:10, UK

Amadou Onana led by example in Aston Villa‘s 2-0 win over West Ham as Unai Emery’s side bolstered their Champions League qualification hopes.

Goals in either half from John McGinn and Ollie Watkins saw Villa close to within one point of third-placed Manchester United, while putting five points between them and Liverpool in fifth.

The result on Sunday at Villa Park ended a three-game losing streak in the Premier League for the Villans, as fans headed off into the international break with a spring in their step.

In addition to having captain McGinn back from injury in recent matches, Youri Tielemans has also returned from a spell on the sidelines.

And while Ross Barkley did a stellar job in the centre of the park, Onana stood above the rest for Villa against West Ham.

Amadou Onana among the Premier League’s best

Onana has largely had an encouraging season, with the big Belgian slowly but surely paying off his £50million price tag from the summer of 2024.

Indeed, against West Ham, Onana picked up the second-highest WhoScored rating among Premier League players from Sunday’s fixtures.

The 24-year-old earned a rating of 7.98, while Nottingham Forest’s Neco Williams came out on top with 8.68 after their 3-0 win over Tottenham.

Villa teammate Lucas Digne, who has just been called up to the France squad, ranked in at fourth with a score of 7.91 as well.

According to Sofascore this season, Onana is averaging one interception per game, along with two tackles, 2.9 balls recovered, 2.5 clearances, and he is dribbled past 0.5 times per match.

And as this Sofascore graphic below shows, the former Everton man was on song against the relegation-threatened Hammers.

Villa have missed the presence of midfield enforcer Boubacar Kamara, McGinn, and Tielemans in 2026.

While the former won’t be back until next season, most likely, Onana could be the key midfield cog for the rest of the campaign.

John McGinn proves his worth for Aston Villa

For all of the deserved praise that comes Onana’s way, having McGinn back fit and firing is such a boost for Villa.

The Scotland international offers much-needed physicality in midfield, while offering a lot in attack and defence.

The 31-year-old has now scored seven goals, in addition to four assists, in 33 games in all competitions, with McGinn finishing off a superb set-piece move against West Ham.

Emery was not able to call on the Scot for nearly two months due to a knee injury between late January and mid-March, but now he is back, Villa look like a much better outfit.

As Chelsea and Liverpool falter below them, Villa seem primed to secure Champions League football next term, with only seven games left to play.

And they also have a good chance of winning the Europa League, with Emery’s side making it to the quarter-finals. Results can turn quickly, but the positivity around Villa Park is building again.