aston villa – Artifex.News https://artifex.news Stay Connected. Stay Informed. Fri, 10 May 2024 05:55:10 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6 https://artifex.news/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/cropped-Artifex-Round-32x32.png aston villa – Artifex.News https://artifex.news 32 32 Olympiakos Make History By Reaching Europa Conference League Final https://artifex.news/olympiakos-make-history-by-reaching-europa-conference-league-final-5630547/ Fri, 10 May 2024 05:55:10 +0000 https://artifex.news/olympiakos-make-history-by-reaching-europa-conference-league-final-5630547/ Read More “Olympiakos Make History By Reaching Europa Conference League Final” »

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Olympiakos will face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final after making history with their 2-0 win against Aston Villa in Thursday’s semi-final second leg. Jose Luis Mendilibar’s side clinched a 6-2 aggregate triumph thanks to a double from Villa’s chief tormentor Ayoub El Kaabi, who hit a hat-trick in the first leg. On a raucous night at the Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus, Olympiakos, champions of Greece a record 47 times, booked their first appearance in a major European final.

The only other Greek club to reach a European final were Panathinaikos, who were beaten by Ajax in the 1971 European Cup final.

Adding to the sense of destiny for Olympiakos, they will face Italian side Fiorentina on May 29 at the AEK Arena, home of one of their local rivals and just 10 miles across Athens from their own stadium.

Mendilibar only took charge in February, but the Spaniard — sacked by Sevilla in October — has already made himself an Olympiakos icon by masterminding a monumental achievement for Greek football.

Owned by Evangelos Marinakis, who also runs Premier League strugglers Nottingham Forest, Olympiakos had failed to get out of the group stage 14 times in 16 attempts in Europe before this season.

If Olympiakos can lift the first European trophy in their 99-year history, it would be a feat to rival Greece’s shock Euro 2004 triumph.

It is shaping up to be a golden year for Olympiakos, whose Under-19 team won the UEFA Youth League final against AC Milan in April.

After losing last season’s Europa Conference League final against West Ham, Fiorentina booked their return to the showpiece by defeating Club Brugge 4-3 on aggregate in the other semi-final on Wednesday.

Relentless Olympiakos

Villa’s exit was a painful conclusion to their bid to reach a first European final since 1982.

Competing in Europe after a 13-year absence, Villa must recover from this blow to refocus on their attempt to qualify for next season’s Champions League via a top four finish in the Premier League.

Unai Emery’s fourth-placed side are seven points clear of fifth-placed Tottenham, who have three games left compared to Villa’s two.

“Olympiakos deserve to be in the final. We lost it in the first 90 minutes at home. We started well this time, but they scored and we were not clinical,” Emery said.

“These are great experiences for us but it’s difficult to win in these competitions, whether it is the Champions League or Conference League.

“We are a little bit frustrated but we have two games left to get the fourth position, which is amazing motivation.”

Olympiakos’s Chiquinho had an early sight of goal after evading the Villa defence, but the midfielder shot wide with a hurried effort.

It was a warning Villa failed to heed as Olympiakos carved open the visitors to take the lead in the 10th minute.

Daniel Podence, on loan from Wolves, picked out David Carmo’s overlapping run and his low cross reached the unmarked El Kaabi, who stretched to poke past Emiliano Martinez from close range.

Villa were out of sync and their spluttering start was encapsulated by Leon Bailey who slipped when he lined up a shot that trickled weakly to Olympiakos keeper Kostas Tzolakis.

Tzolakis made a superb save to repel Bailey’s fierce strike with an agile tip over on the stroke of half-time.

But with the tie firmly in their hands, Olympiakos pressed relentlessly and defended in droves to keep Villa at bay.

Morocco forward El Kaabi put the result beyond doubt in the 78th minute when he sprinted onto Tzolakis’s punt, eluded Ezri Konsa and slotted home to send Olympiakos into ecstasy.

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Premier League: Aston Villa’s Top Four Bid Rocked At Brighton, Chelsea Rout West Ham https://artifex.news/premier-league-aston-villas-top-four-bid-rocked-at-brighton-chelsea-rout-west-ham-5595441/ Sun, 05 May 2024 15:31:56 +0000 https://artifex.news/premier-league-aston-villas-top-four-bid-rocked-at-brighton-chelsea-rout-west-ham-5595441/ Read More “Premier League: Aston Villa’s Top Four Bid Rocked At Brighton, Chelsea Rout West Ham” »

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Aston Villa’s bid to finish in the Premier League’s top four was rocked by a 1-0 defeat at Brighton, while Chelsea thrashed West Ham 5-0 to keep alive their hopes of European qualification on Sunday. A Villa win combined with a Tottenham loss at Liverpool in Sunday’s late game would have sealed a Champions League place for Unai Emery’s side. But Villa were unable to fulfil their part of that equation as Joao Pedro‘s 87th minute goal condemned them to a second painful defeat in four days.

Ending Brighton’s six-match winless run, Pedro headed in the rebound after Robin Olsen saved his penalty, which had been awarded for Ezri Konsa’s foul on Simon Adingra.

Surprisingly beaten 4-2 by Olympiakos in the Europa Conference League semi-final first leg on Thursday, Villa were well below their best once again.

Villa remain in fourth place, seven points clear of fifth placed Tottenham, who have two games in hand.

Emery’s men host Liverpool and travel to Crystal Palace in their last two games as they fight to return to the Champions League for the first time since 1982-83.

At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea crushed London rivals West Ham to move above Manchester United into seventh place.

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino is fighting to convince the club’s co-owner Todd Boehly to give him a second season in charge after his troubled debut campaign.

Pochettino admits it is “not his decision” if he stays, but securing a place in Europe could be enough to avoid the sack.

Cole Palmer put Chelsea ahead in the 15th minute with his 21st league goal of the season, the forward firing home after West Ham failed to clear.

Conor Gallagher doubled Chelsea’s advantage after 30 minutes with a blistering volley after West Ham’s Kurt Zouma deflected the ball towards the midfielder.

Noni Madueke bagged Chelsea’s third six minutes later as the winger turned in Thiago Silva‘s header from close-range.

Nicolas Jackson piled on the misery for woeful West Ham in the 48th minute with a tap-in from Madueke’s cross.

The Senegal striker was on target again with 10 minutes left.

The lopsided nature of defeat did little to quell speculation over the future of West Ham boss David Moyes, who has come under fire from fans for his perceived negative game-plans.

Ninth placed West Ham have reportedly held talks with former Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui and could opt to move on from Moyes, whose contract expires at the end of the season.

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Emiliano Martinez Penalty Heroics Take Aston Villa To Conference League Semi-Finals https://artifex.news/emiliano-martinez-penalty-heroics-take-aston-villa-to-conference-league-semi-finals-5474559/ Fri, 19 Apr 2024 04:23:22 +0000 https://artifex.news/emiliano-martinez-penalty-heroics-take-aston-villa-to-conference-league-semi-finals-5474559/ Read More “Emiliano Martinez Penalty Heroics Take Aston Villa To Conference League Semi-Finals” »

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Emiliano Martinez starred in a drama-filled penalty shootout as Aston Villa squeezed past Lille and into the Europa Conference League semi-finals on Thursday following a late Matty Cash goal in normal time. Villa led 2-1 from last week’s first leg but their quest for a first European trophy since 1982 looked doomed when goals from Yusuf Yazici and Benjamin Andre put Lille two up on the night and 3-2 ahead in the tie in northern France.

A defensive mishap allowed Cash to bring Villa even with three minutes left though before Martinez, displaying his trademark dark arts, saved twice in the shootout as Unai Emery’s side won 4-3 in the shootout.

“He is very important for us. He has his personality and his personality in the dressing room is very important because he is a leader with his experiences. He has a really brilliant mentality,” said Emery.

“And then on the pitch he has his personality and he played fantastic. He saved two penalty shots so of course I am very proud of him. I am very proud of all the players.”

The Argentina goalkeeper saved spot-kicks from Nabil Bentaleb and Andre after being whistled loudly throughout the game by a crowd that had not forgotten his celebrations after the 2022 World Cup final win over France.

There was a confusing moment during the shootout when he was shown a second yellow card for more antics, including pressing his finger to his lips, but rules dictate that any bookings picked up in the match are reset before penalties commence.

It was a compelling finale to an evening that began with Lille quickly erasing Villa’s advantage, making full use of the extra rest afforded to them against a side who beat Arsenal 2-0 on Sunday.

Lille start strongly

Yazici steered home 15 minutes in to haul Paulo Fonseca’s team level over the two legs before Lille captain Andre glanced in a corner midway through the second half.

But with the Ligue 1 club heading towards their first major European semi-final, a defensive mix-up in the closing minutes proved costly.

Cash hammered the ball home to bring Villa even at 3-3 on aggregate after Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier spilled a looping cross following a collision with Bentaleb.

Chevalier redeemed himself with a sensational save from Douglas Luiz in extra time, reacting sharply to scoop the Brazilian’s header over the crossbar after parrying a powerful shot from Leon Bailey.

But Martinez had the final say in the shootout after Chevalier saved Bailey’s attempt, with Villa moving on to face Olympiakos in the last four.

Last season’s runners-up Fiorentina sealed a return to the semi-finals with a 2-0 win over 10-man Viktoria Plzen after extra time.

Cadu was sent off in the second half for a foul on the edge of the Plzen box and Fiorentina made the extra man count when Nico Gonzalez struck in the 92nd minute.

Skipper Cristiano Biraghi added a second on 108 minutes as the Italians progressed 2-0 on aggregate.

Spanish striker Ferran Jutgla got both goals for Club Brugge in a 2-0 win in Greece as the Belgians eased through 3-0 over the two legs.

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Man Utd Held By Brentford As Tottenham, Villa Win In Top Four Chase https://artifex.news/man-utd-held-by-brentford-as-tottenham-villa-win-in-top-four-chase-5343747/ Sun, 31 Mar 2024 04:43:58 +0000 https://artifex.news/man-utd-held-by-brentford-as-tottenham-villa-win-in-top-four-chase-5343747/ Read More “Man Utd Held By Brentford As Tottenham, Villa Win In Top Four Chase” »

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Manchester United lost more ground in the battle for a place in next season’s Champions League after a dramatic finale in a 1-1 draw at Brentford on Saturday, as Son Heung-min fired Tottenham to a 2-1 win over Luton. Aston Villa remain in fourth after a 2-0 win over Wolves, three points ahead of Tottenham, but now enjoy an 11-point cushion over United, who were lucky to escape west London with a point. Mason Mount‘s first goal for the Red Devils in the 96th minute looked set to snatch victory for Erik ten Hag’s men despite being thoroughly outplayed.

However, Brentford hit back three minutes later through Kristoffer Ajer to register just their second point in seven games.

“We were winning in the end, maybe it wasn’t deserved, but then you have to take the three points,” said Ten Hag. “It is very disappointing to draw the game.”

Spurs have now come from behind to win in four of their last five home games and needed another second-half turnaround after Tahith Chong’s strike put Luton into a shock lead after just three minutes.

An Ange Postecoglou half-time substitution again made an impact for Tottenham as Brennan Johnson’s cross was turned into his own net by Issa Kabore just six minutes after the Welsh international’s introduction.

Son had missed a number of chances earlier in the game but finally got some fortune when his deflected effort trickled past Thomas Kaminski for his 15th goal of the season.

“Until the end I was getting frustrated but I wanted to stay calm as captain,” said Son.

“We don’t want it to always end like this, it could be nicer when we have it (won) earlier.”

Tottenham’s victory briefly took them into fourth, but Villa responded as goals from Moussa Diaby and Ezri Konsa gave them the bragging rights from a Midlands derby.

– Chelsea ‘upset’ Pochettino –
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino was met with another backlash at Stamford Bridge after his side failed to make the most of an extra man for the entire second half and drew 2-2 against second-bottom Burnley.

The Blues appeared on course to cruise to victory after Lorenz Assignon was harshly sent off for pulling down Mykhailo Mudryk inside the area.

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany was also shown a red card for taking his protests too far.

Cole Palmer coolly chipped in the resulting penalty, but the 10 men levelled two minutes into the second half thanks to Josh Cullen’s super finish from outside the box.

Raheem Sterling had been booed off in Chelsea’s FA Cup quarter-final win over Leicester a fortnight ago but thought he had set up the winner in style with a flick that Palmer stroked into the far corner.

Chelsea, though, failed to hold out again as Dara O’Shea headed in a corner nine minutes from time.

“Today we didn’t show the capacity, the energy, the hunger that is the minimum to compete in the Premier League,” said Pochettino.

“In the defensive phase we conceded too much. That is why I am so upset and disappointed.”

– Newcastle fightback-

Newcastle closed to within one point of West Ham in seventh after a remarkable fightback to win 4-3 at St. James’ Park.

Goals from Michail Antonio, Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen wiped out the advantage given to Newcastle by Alexander Isak’s early penalty.

However, a second Isak spot-kick 13 minutes from time sparked the turnaround before substitute Harvey Barnes struck twice to send Eddie Howe scurrying down the touchline in celebration.

“A lot of emotions in that game, we were swinging all over the place,” said Howe.

“The last 10 minutes was amazing to be part of.”

Everton’s winless run stretched to a club record 12 Premier League games after a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth to leave the Toffees still perilously placed just three points above the relegation zone.

Nottingham Forest edged out of the bottom three, above Luton on goal difference, as Chris Wood salvaged a 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace.

Bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United were denied just their fourth win of the season after conceding twice late on to draw 3-3 with Fulham.

All of the three title challengers are in action on Sunday.

Liverpool have the chance to go top when they host Brighton before Manchester City and Arsenal kick-off at the Etihad in a clash of huge significance in the title race.

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