The race for European spots in the Premier League is heating up, and Aston Villa just turned up the temperature. In a commanding performance, Villa defeated Newcastle United 4-1, drawing level with Nottingham Forest in the fight for a coveted top-five finish.
Villa`s display was almost as impressive as their narrow defeat to PSG earlier in the week. Once again, they proved that Villa Park is a fortress when manager Unai Emery unleashes his attacking talent. The onslaught began early, with Ollie Watkins` shot finding the net via a deflection off Fabian Schar just 33 seconds into the game. Schar had earlier been fortunate to avoid a red card for a foul on Watkins, but he later redeemed himself with a header, leveling the score before halftime.
However, Newcastle rarely threatened to stay level. Manager Eddie Howe, upon his return from illness, will need to address his team`s late-game fatigue. Newcastle, who had previously won three matches scoring 12 goals and conceding only one, seemed to run out of energy after a demanding series of games. Starting the same eleven players for five consecutive April matches likely contributed to this.
In contrast, Villa, with a healthy squad, had a wealth of options to deploy against Newcastle. Watkins, seemingly motivated to reclaim his starting position, delivered a standout performance, scoring a goal, hitting the crossbar twice, and setting up Ian Maatsen for Villa`s second goal just past the hour mark.
Emery`s substitutions further strengthened Villa`s grip on the game. Jacob Ramsey`s run and cross led to a goal by Dan Burn, after a flick-on from Youri Tielemans. Fellow substitute Amadou Onana then capped off the victory with a powerful strike from 20 yards, finding the top corner.
Villa`s recent form suggests they are perfectly timing their push. Five consecutive wins, including victories over Nottingham Forest and now Newcastle, are putting pressure on the teams ahead in the table. Chelsea, in particular, should be grateful for Villa`s results.
Manchester City, who also played at Villa Park recently, will be wary of Villa`s strength. Despite this, City are managing to secure crucial points. Their recent late win against Everton, a traditionally tough away fixture, was vital.
Typically, when Manchester City builds late-season momentum, it`s aimed at winning major trophies, not just Champions League qualification. However, manager Pep Guardiola insists that Champions League qualification this season would be a “big, big success” for his injury-hit squad.
“Today was really, really important,” Guardiola said. “Of course, the motivation is different when you`re fighting for the title, but we accepted that many, many months ago. I tried to convince the players that qualification for the Champions League in this country is a huge achievement. Don’t feel sorry for ourselves because we made a not good season. We still have something that is really good for the future, to improve and be in the positions we want to be.”
“If we think that qualification for the Champions League is not enough, we would be arrogant. We would be presumptuous. We would be something we don`t have to be. Every season in this country since I arrived nine years ago, I thought qualification for the Champions League is a big, big success.”
Whether City will secure Champions League football remains to be seen. After a comeback win against Crystal Palace, Guardiola continued with a Kevin De Bruyne-led system. However, relying on a 33-year-old De Bruyne, whose fitness is declining, raises questions. This was evident against Everton, where City struggled for 80 minutes to break down Everton`s defense, managing only eight shots with a low expected goals value of 0.6.
Nico O`Reilly eventually scored following a mistake by Jordan Pickford, and Mateo Kovacic added a second. While the performance wasn`t perfect, securing points is paramount at this stage of the season.
This is especially true as their rivals are faltering. Chelsea, facing boos after qualifying for the Conference League semi-finals, need to recover against Fulham. Their lead in the table has shrunk to goal difference, and they will hope a match against Tottenham, a team vulnerable to counter-attacks, will provide an opportunity to end their two-game losing streak.
With just a month of the season remaining, the race for European places looks set to go down to the wire. Villa`s surge is putting significant pressure on the other contenders.
