Villa Park saw the frustration of Aston Villa as they tried to end their season on a high note. Despite Emi Martinez’s suspension, the decision to rest Pau Torres in the first leg of their Europa League Conference semi-final allowed Olympiakos to dismantle Villa and effectively sealed the tie. The preparations for the second leg did not go well either, with Tottenham losing four straight games.
Villa could have potentially locked in Champions League football for next season if they had won their recent home matches against Brighton and Olympiakos. However, after winning their first nine home games of the season, they have only won three of the nine that followed. Unable to rest players in any of those matches, Morgan Rodgers suffered an injury that depleted the squad further.
Despite these challenges, Villa fielded a strong first XI in Greece, with only two players missing from their team that had beaten Manchester City and Arsenal within a week. Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans were absent, but their places were filled by Villa’s record signing Moussa Diaby and Matty Cash. With this lineup change, Villa shifted to three center-backs, aiming to be solid defensively while hoping to create scoring opportunities in attack.
The season has been strong for Villa, but defensive errors have held them back from reaching their full potential. A prime example came in Athens when sloppy defensive marking shattered their comeback plan and final dreams after just 10 minutes. If Unai Emery can address these defensive shortcomings in pre-season, there is room for this Villa team to further improve next term.
David Michael can be found at My Old Man Said.
In conclusion, Aston Villa had a frustrating past week as they aimed to finish off their season in style. Despite resting Pau Torres in the first leg of their Europa League Conference semi-final and losing key players like Emi Martinez and Morgan Rodgers due to injuries or suspensions
