*Return to glory for Ginola*

Aston Villa frustrate you. They are an efficient team, too content to squeeze out results when more taking of risks to win, rather than consolidating to avoid defeat, might lift them up with clubs of comparable size. Having fought back from a goal down to take a lead yesterday, they then allowed West Ham back in to prise a precious point that arrests worrying run of four previous defeats for them.

Two moments of skill by David Ginola, one a goal, the other an assist for Lee Hendrie, overturned Frédéric Kanouté’s opening goal, but Frank Lampard pilfered a share of the spoils to stop Villa in their tracks.

It was never going to produce a feast of goals given the teams’ goal-scoring records of late, the more so since both only played one striker. The Villa manager, John Gregory, played Paul Merson in behind Julian Joachim, resting Dion Dublin and beginning the match with the £9.5 million signing Juan Pablo Angel as a substitute. West Ham’s Harry Redknapp, meanwhile, having decided that Paolo Di Canio and Joe Cole were not a complementary couple, dropped Cole to the bench and deployed Di Canio wide on the left in a five-man midfield behind Kanouté.

Thus the formations - both unusually playing four at the back - allied to the natural caution of the home side and the visitors’ lack of confidence, produced a first half of monumental tedium, with no clear-cut chances created and both sides content to prod the ball around in midfield. It rivalled Thursday on BBC1, which featured Barcelona v Liverpool, when the only shot came during EastEnders .

Early on, Mark Delaney blocked a shot by Sebastien Schemmel and Gareth Barry did likewise to Frank Lampard’s attempt. That was West Ham’s attacking total in the first half. Villa’s featured Paul Merson slipping Joachim clear for a low shot that lacked power and Shaka Hislop dived on comfortably.

The rain-soaked surface, watched with concern by FA officials and Villa Park ground staff in advance of today’s Cup semi-final, was too slippery for some players, their first touches exposed as inadequate as the ball squirted away. Thankfully the stimulus the game needed came within 30 seconds of the restart. Schemmel sent Lampard into space wide on the right and, looking up having reached the byline, he perceptively picked out the run of Kanouté and delivered a low ball that the Frenchman despatched emphatically past David James from 12 yards.

Relief coursing through them, they began to play some of the football that had thrilled a few months ago. John Moncur almost made it two but Mark Delaney deflected his goalbound shot - and astonishingly Di Canio sidefooted over the bar from seven yards after James had merely pushed out Moncur’s low cross to his feet.

Somehow you knew West Ham would rue the miss. They did when, after Stuart Pearce had fouled Joachim on the edge of the penalty area, Ginola stepped up to curl home a free-kick. His talent was on show again in an early left-wing cross that Pearce could only head on to Lee Hendrie, who drove home an instant half-volley to turn the game on its head.

Villa then entrenched themselves and paid the penalty when Pearce’s free-kick was headed against a post by Igor Stimac and Lampard slotted home the rebound.