Aston Villa will play Premier League football next season after a draw at West Ham was enough to ensure they escaped relegation on the final day of the campaign.
Hometown hero and captain Jack Grealish looked to have sealed a win for Villa with a powerful strike in the 84th minute, but Andriy Yarmolenko’s deflected leveller soon after made it a nervy finale for the visitors.
They hung on though and the point, coupled with a defeat for Watford at Arsenal, ensured Villa’s survival and consigned the Hornets to the Championship next season along with Bournemouth, whose win at Everton was not enough.
It caps an impressive end to the season for Dean Smith’s side, who were seven points from safety two weeks ago but then put together their first four-game unbeaten run of 2019-20 to survive.
It was a game of few chances at the London Stadium, although the in-form Michail Antonio would have made Villa’s afternoon a lot more tense had he not blazed a shot wide with just the keeper to beat in the first half.
West Ham secured their own Premier League place for 2020-21 with a draw at Manchester United on Wednesday and end the season in 16th.
