Unai Emery sends message to Italian international after Villa draw

The Italy international’s 79th minute strike earned Villa a 1-1 draw which extended their cushion to three points.

Zaniolo, who has endured a difficult campaign since joining on loan from Galatasaray last August, put his finger to his lips as he celebrated in front of the travelling supporters.

The 24-year-old has struggled for consistency and was also questioned by Italian police investigating a betting scandal in his homeland.

But Emery is hopeful he can now have a strong finish to the season as Villa hunt down a place in the Champions League.

“Every player was there when we needed them. Zaniolo was one of them,” said Emery. “His impact was fantastic.

“I am very happy for him and hopefully we can add him in this mood for the rest of the season.”

Emery admitted his team were below-par during a first half in which they trailed to Michail Antonio’s opener.

But a tactical switch at the break, which included the introduction of Moussa Diaby, sparked an improvement with the latter setting up the leveller for Zaniolo.

Villa then escaped at the death when West Ham saw a goal ruled out for handball following a VAR check which lasted more than five minutes.

Hammers boss David Moyes later refused to discuss the incident.

“You can contact Howard Webb yourselves,” he said, referring to the head of Premier League refereeing body PGMOL.

Emery described VAR as “fair for both teams”.

“More or less, I accept the result,” he continued. “The first half we did not control the game. We were trying to impose our position and get into our attacking third.

“But when we were getting there we were not really clear getting into the box. Even with the high press we did not get good options with some players to progress and dominate.

“When they scored the goal the game changed and I decided to change the plan. The second half we did better.

“We did not create clear chances because they defended well. But we were dominating and playing well. We scored and then tried to win the match. They were refused two goals but VAR is fair for both teams.”