MARTIN O’NEILL is a good general, and on this evidence can also be a lucky one. Villa played second fiddle to West Ham for much of the second half and their defending was sometimes desperate and dependent on Brad Friedel’s excellent goalkeeping, but what mattered were the points. Villa got them and climbed above Manchester United into third place.

At close to the halfway mark of the season, this is a seriously impressive effort. Dizzying heights for a team outside the established top four. But O’Neill also knows when to talk the humblest of games. “You haven’t been drinking, have you?” he asked a journalist who wanted to know if Villa could go on and win the title.

This victory hinged on a cross 12 minutes from the end by James Milner that took a wicked deflection off Lucas Neill’s left knee and looped over his goalkeeper, Robert Green.

It was cruel for West Ham. They had been the better side through the second half and had enough chances to win. Afterwards the pained expression on manager Gianfranco Zola’s face was something we rarely saw in Zola the player. It was a reminder of the grim profession he has entered. “I’m upset and frustrated for my players,” he said. “They deserved better but it will not last like this.”

West Ham are fourth from bottom. If there are worries about their Premier League prospects, they stem from the club’s perilous financial state rather than the quality of the squad. They are good enough to stay up but broke enough to go down. As O’Neill used to lament before he saw the colour of Randy Lerner’s dollars, the rich inevitably rise too, and stay at the top of the Premier League.

O’Neill’s performance, though, has been impressive. He gambled £9m on the unproven Ashley Young and his judgement has been spectacularly vindicated. “World class” is not a badge to be casually hung around the neck of a 23-year-old winger yet to play in the Champions League or for his country at a major tournament but when he speaks publicly, O’Neill is the last man in the world to be careless. He has been equally effusive about the other great talent in his side, Gabriel Agbonlahor, and though the praise was deserved, it was again purposeful. O’Neill wants his team to see themselves as rightful contenders for a top-four place. He also wants us to look on the team differently. By refusing to be bullied into selling Gareth Barry to Liverpool, he made one statement; by mentioning Ashley Young in the same sentence as Ronaldo and Messi, he made another. All the while, Villa’s stock rises.

They started this game in fourth place, one point ahead of Arsenal, against opponents showing plenty of resilience lately. O’Neill has taken to playing Agbonlahor as a lone striker but it is a deceptive formation because when the team were moving sweetly in the first half, they routinely got three or four players into the box and often threatened to score.

Through that opening half West Ham had one string to their bow — Craig Bellamy’s searing pace. There were plenty of moments when it promised to be enough. Bellamy isn’t just quick, he is masterful in his timing of the run. The best chance of the half came when he latched on to Herita Ilunga’s fine pass. The striker’s first touch was exquisite and his precise shot drew a fine save from Friedel.

Villa were unfazed. Young got an opportunity to run at Neill and by the time the full-back turned to chase, the winger was six yards clear. When Agbonlahor raced away from Scott Parker on the left, his cross gave Steve Sidwell the chance to finish but his shot flashed wide. Then Parker made a terrible mistake and Young was flying towards goal, rounding Green but hitting the far post. All the while Young and Agbonlahor needed just a sniff to create an opening.

West Ham were much better in the second period. Quiet to the point of anonymity in the first half, Carlton Cole got more involved and should have put his team ahead when he got on the end of Neill’s fine cross but failed to get his header on target. Then Cole got behind the defence and it took another excellent save from Friedel to deny the home team.

Encouraged by those openings, West Ham pressed forward but in doing so allowed Villa to play the counter-attacking game that so suits Agbonlahor and Young. It was from one such attack that they went in front. Even then, West Ham had a chance to equalise but Calum Davenport stroked his shot too close to Friedel and gave him the opportunity to end the match with a deserved clean sheet.

Villa weren’t brilliant but it was easy to see the brilliance of their young England attackers. It was also easy to warm to the team’s spirit. Martin Laursen is a fine captain, Sidwell and Stiliyan Petrov provide strength and leadership in midfield and there is excellent balance to the team. Arsenal are now four points behind and they wouldn’t want it to get any worse. The teams meet at Villa Park on Boxing Day.

Star man: Brad Friedel (Blackburn)

Yellow cards: West Ham: Neill, Bellamy Aston Villa: Milner

Referee: M Halsey

Attendance: 31,353

West Ham: Green, Neill, Davenport, Upson, Ilunga, Collison (Tristan 84min), Noble, Parker (Mullins h-t), Behrami (Bowyer 57min), Bellamy, Cole.

Aston Villa: Friedel, Cuellar (Reo-Coker 58min), Davies, Laursen, L Young, Petrov, Milner, Sidwell, Barry, A Young, Agbonlahor.