European Super Football

Aston Villa 1 - 0 Bayern Munich In an electrifying evening at Villa Park, Jhon Duran once again made a stunning impact off the bench, securing a glorious Champions League victory for Aston Villa over Bayern Munich. The occasion was steeped in history, evoking memories of Villa’s famous 1982 European Cup triumph against the German side in Rotterdam. This time, Duran replicated that iconic scoreline, netting his fifth goal as a substitute this season. Brought on in the 70th minute to replace Ollie Watkins, it took Duran just nine minutes to make his presence felt. Spotting Bayern’s experienced keeper, Manuel Neuer, out of position, he calmly lobbed the ball into the net. A closer look at a sensational night in the Midlands For Villa manager Unai Emery, this was another resounding success. The result builds on Villa's strong start to their Champions League   campaign having beaten Young Boys 3-0 in Switzerland in their opening match. Villa Park, hosting its first Champions Le...

 Aston Villa 2 - 1 Brighton & Hove Albion Aston Villa beat Brighton at Park to secure a return to European football.  The home needed to win to finish seventh in the Premier League and earn a spot in the playoffs for the Europa Conference League. Villa flew out of the blocks and forged ahead when Douglas Luiz scored after eight minutes. Premier League news (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) The architect of the first goal, Jacob Ramsey played creator once again when he unselfishly teed up Ollie Watkins to make it 2-0 with 28 minutes played. As he did for the first goal, Jacob Ramsey played creator again. He unselfishly teed up Ollie Watkins to make it 2-0 with 28 minutes played. In the 38th minute, a VAR decision went Undav's way when he scored following a quickly taken free-kick by Pascal Gross. The assistant referee had initially flagged for offside, but this decision was overruled.  Click here to watch the highlights via the Aston Villa Facebook page.  The ...

Aston Villa 0 - 0 Manchester United Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag will be hoping that the hard-fought draw at Aston Villa eases some of the intense pressure surrounding his role. In contrast to recent performances, United showed signs of the resilience that had been sorely lacking during the home defeat to Tottenham and the defensive frailty witnessed against Porto in the Europa League. Ten Hag called upon experienced defenders Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans to bring stability to the backline, though Maguire was forced off with an injury just before half-time. Marcus Rashford twice tested Villa’s goalkeeper, Emi Martinez, while United captain Bruno Fernandes came closest to scoring with a second-half free-kick that rattled the crossbar in front of the Holte End. Substitute Antony also drew an impressive acrobatic save from Martinez with a long-range effort. Meanwhile, United’s goalkeeper, Andre Onana, had a relatively quiet evening but made an excellent save to deny a power...

Aston Villa 3 - 1 Brentford Aston Villa ended an eight-game winless run in style, defeating Brentford 3-1 at Villa Park. Author - Alex W Unai Emery’s side had not tasted victory in the Premier League since their October triumph over Fulham at Craven Cottage. However, they took the lead early on when Morgan Rogers unleashed a stunning curling strike from the edge of the box into the top corner. Ollie Watkins, a former Brentford player, doubled Villa's advantage just seven minutes later. The striker coolly converted a penalty after being brought down by Ethan Pinnock in the area. Despite Brentford’s promising start in possession, they found themselves further behind when Matty Cash smashed home Rogers’ pinpoint cross at the far post. Premier League: 2024/2025 season news and stories Discover the latest from Villa Park by clicking here The away side's keeper, Mark Flekken, made several impressive saves, including one to deny Watkins from heading in Villa’s fourth early in the...

Aston Villa 4 - 1 Newcastle United Aston Villa delivered a scintillating display at Villa Park to sweep aside Newcastle United and underline their intent in the race for a top-five finish and Champions League football. Author - Peter Grainger Stadium - Villa Park Ollie Watkins gave Villa the perfect start, drawing level with Gabriel Agbonlahor as the club’s joint-highest Premier League goalscorer. His strike after just 33 seconds took a cruel deflection off Fabian Schär and left Nick Pope stranded. Newcastle responded in the 18th minute, with Schär making amends by heading home Harvey Barnes’ deep, curling cross. The ball crept through the legs of Emiliano Martínez to restore parity. But Villa refused to relent. Just after the hour mark, Watkins turned provider, sliding in Ian Maatsen who showed composure beyond his years to lift the ball delicately over the keeper and restore the lead. The hosts found another gear. Jacob Ramsey’s low ball across the box ricocheted in off Dan Burn ...

Aston Villa 4 - 2 Celtic Ollie Watkins played a key role in Aston Villa’s victory over Celtic, securing their place in the last 16 of the Champions League – just hours after Arsenal’s interest in the England striker became public. Author - Sean M Stadium - Villa Park Check out this iconic banner from the Villa fans . Watkins restored Villa’s lead after they had squandered an early 2-0 advantage, while Morgan Rogers, who set the tone early on, went on to complete a hat-trick in the emphatic win over the Scottish champions. Celtic now face a daunting play-off clash against Bayern Munich. It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Watkins, who won a second-half penalty but slipped at the crucial moment, sending his effort high and wide. Villa have no plans to part ways with the 29-year-old forward, especially now that Unai Emery’s side have secured qualification for the knockout stages, finishing eighth in the table. See some of the highlights in the video above. Footage from the Celtic YouT...

Aston Villa 1 - 1 Ipswich Town Ipswich Town produced a gutsy performance to claim a valuable Premier League point at Villa Park, despite playing almost an hour with 10 men. Author - Marcus Stadium - Villa Park The match had been uneventful until Axel Tuanzebe, facing his former club, brought down Jacob Ramsey on the edge of the area, picking up a second yellow card and leaving Ipswich with an uphill task. Up to that point, the visitors had defended resolutely, and they continued to frustrate Villa even with a numerical disadvantage. Against the run of play, Ipswich took a shock lead when Liam Delap beat Axel Disasi to Omari Hutchinson’s low cross, steering the ball into the far corner to silence the home crowd. As frustration grew among the Villa supporters, Ollie Watkins eventually levelled, reacting quickest after Marcus Rashford’s thunderous free-kick crashed against the crossbar. Villa pushed hard for a winner, with Marco Asensio missing a golden chance before forcing Alex Palm...

Crystal Palace 4 - 1 Aston Villa Ismaila Sarr’s brace inspired a ruthless Crystal Palace to sweep aside Aston Villa at Selhurst Park, keeping their push for a top-half Premier League finish on track. Author - Jamie P Stadium - Selhurst Park A closer look at what happened at South London Home form has been a concern for manager Oliver Glasner, with the Eagles securing just two league wins at Selhurst Park before this fixture. However, any concerns pre match vanished very quickly.  Marking his 27th birthday in style, Sarr gave Palace a strong start in the first half. Villa briefly levelled through Morgan Rogers early in the second half, but that only spurred the hosts on to take complete control on a memorable night in SE25. Jean-Philippe Mateta restored Palace’s lead moments later with a superb finish, moving him up to second in the club’s all-time Premier League goalscoring chart with 36 goals. Sarr then grabbed his second of the night before Eddie Nketiah, coming off the benc...

Aston Villa 2 - 0 Cardiff City Marco Asensio was the star of the show for Aston Villa again as he helped them secure a deserved 2-0 win over Championship strugglers Cardiff City in the FA Cup. Author - Jamie P Stadium - Villa Park The hosts maintained control throughout the match but faced a strong performance from visiting goalkeeper Ethan Horvath, who made several crucial saves to keep Cardiff competitive. In a clash of attack versus defense, the hosts struggled to break down Cardiff's low block. However, they eventually found the breakthrough when Marco Asensio scored from a precise cross by Marcus Rashford. Asensio secured the win in the 80th minute with another clinical finish, converting a cross from Leon Bailey. This was his fourth goal since joining on loan from Paris Saint-Germain in January. This could still be a landmark year for Aston Villa This year for Villa could yet be one for the history books, with Unai Emery’s side still in the hunt for silverware on two fron...

Aston Villa 2 - 1 Chelsea New signings Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford combined twice as Aston Villa came from behind to beat Chelsea, grabbing three valuable points in their push for European qualification. Author - Lauren W Stadium - Villa Park An excellent piece of play out wide from Pedro Neto fashioned a ninth-minute opener for Chelsea, with the winger skipping past Ian Maatsen before drilling a low delivery across the face of the goal which only required a slight prod from Enzo Fernandez to turn it past Emiliano Martinez. Although Chelsea appeared to have the upper hand, they failed to maintain control of the match. The introduction of Rashford at halftime proved crucial; he was initially ruled offside, but the video assistant referee overturned that decision. Rashford then assisted Asensio by tapping a Matty Cash cross across the six-yard box, allowing Asensio to score for Aston Villa and level the game. After again being fed by fellow mid-season recruit Rashford, Asensio ...

Aston Villa 2 - 1 Manchester City Manchester City's crisis intensified as they slipped to another damaging defeat at Aston Villa. Author - Macca Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers goals meant Phil Foden's late reply for the visitors was little consolation. Defending champions City have dropped to sixth in the Premier League, nine points behind leaders Liverpool having played two games more, while Villa have moved above them into fifth. It is now nine defeats in 12 games in all competitions for City, who are winless in their last eight away matches, as their season continues to spiral downwards. Pep Guardiola made six changes from the Manchester derby defeat last week but it made little difference during another laboured performance. The latest Manchester City news and stories What's going wrong for the Premier League champions?  Villa, who had won just three of their previous 11 top-flight games, earned a much-needed victory, one which keeps their top-four hopes firmly alive....

Monaco 1 - 0 Aston Villa Aston Villa missed the opportunity to all but guarantee their place in the Champions League knockout stages after a narrow defeat to Monaco at the Stade Louis II. Author - JP The only goal of the game came in the eighth minute when Wilfried Singo headed in from close range. Emiliano Martinez had done well to block Thilo Kehrer's initial effort, but Singo was quickest to react. Villa struggled to find their rhythm but did create chances to equalise. Monaco’s goalkeeper, Radoslaw Majecki, made two key saves before half-time, first stopping Leon Bailey after some neat play by Emiliano Buendia and then comfortably dealing with Ollie Watkins’ shot, also set up by Buendia. The latest Champions League news can be found here . Monaco thought they had doubled their lead early in the second half, but Maghnes Akliouche’s strike was ruled out for offside. Despite the setback, the hosts continued to threaten, twice breaking through Villa’s defence, only to be deni...

 Aston Villa 1 - 2 Manchester United Manchester United gained a valuable 2-1 away win at Aston Villa to earn a long-awaited victory away against top-nine opposition. The Red Devils started the match at Villa Park, hoping to extend their recent game streak across all competitions. More Premier League news here:  Premier League news and stories: 2023/2024 (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com) Villa made a good start to the game and looked to keep possession of the ball for long spells to draw Manchester United onto them. However, the visitors had other plans as they sat back and looked to hit on the counter. Rasmus Hojlund gave them the perfect start as he fired the Red Devils 1-0 up after 17 minutes following an assist by Harry Maguire. United had 42% of the ball in the first half and attempted seven shots, but hit the target just once for Hojlund’s goal. Villa had 10 attempts with three on target but neither side managed to alter the scoreline as the visitors led 1-0 at the b...

Manchester United 1 - 0 Aston Villa Scott McTominay's early header proved enough for Manchester United to beat Aston Villa at Old Trafford. McTominay was allowed to run into the Villa six-yard box, where he met Fred's superb cross to steer the ball past Emiliano Martinez. This meant Villa boss and former Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard faced an unhappy return to Manchester, where he was baited by the home supporters. Some have argued that the result was harsh on Gerrard and his Villa side.  VAR controversy The controversial moment of the game came with an offside and VAR decision in the second-half.  Villa put the ball in the back of the net but what followed was a lengthy wait for the video assistant referee to ask Michael Oliver to make the final decision by consulting the screen. After a delay of several minutes, the referee eventually ruled Jacob Ramsey was offside, saying that he had impeded Edinson Cavani in the build-up. What did you think of the decision? Watch...

Crystal Palace v Aston Villa preview Crystal Palace and Aston Villa will both be looking to make it successive Premier League victories when they meet at Selhurst Park on Tuesday evening. Author - Peter Grainger Palace, currently 13th in the table, head into the game on the back of a 2-0 win over Fulham on Saturday, while Villa, sitting in eighth, edged past Chelsea 2-1 later that day. The Eagles are six points adrift of 10th-placed Fulham, having finished in that position last season. A lack of goals has hampered their progress this term, but there is still plenty of time to turn things around. Oliver Glasner’s side claimed victory at Craven Cottage thanks to a first-half own goal from Joachim Andersen, before Daniel Muñoz secured the points in the 66th minute. That result means Palace have won three of their last four games in all competitions, although all of those victories have come away from home. At Selhurst Park, they have struggled, losing their last two league matches aga...

 Aston Villa 2 - 4 Olympiakos "Everything that could have gone wrong, did." Those were the words of one Aston Villa fan as their chances of reaching a first European final since 1982 were severely dented against Olympiakos. The star man on the night for the visitors was Ayoub El Kaabi. He scored a hat-trick, netting twice early on. Ollie Watkins then reduced the deficit for Unai Emery's side and Moussa Diaby equalised moments after the interval. Villa Park was rocking at this point, creating an atmosphere that had not been seen at the famous old stadium for many years.  However, Olympiakos roared back into a two-goal lead with a El Kaabi penalty and a deflected strike from Santiago Hezze.  Douglas Luiz missed a late penalty, meaning Villa must overturn a two-goal deficit in the second leg.  The Greek Super League side have actually never reached a major European final. They played without fear and attacking verve as they pressed and harassed Villa into defe...

Bournemouth 0 - 1 Aston Villa  Ollie Watkins became Aston Villa’s all-time leading Premier League goalscorer after his first-half strike secured a hard-fought victory over Bournemouth and kept Unai Emery’s side firmly in the hunt for Champions League qualification. Author - Ajay Stadium - Vitality Stadium Watkins’ composed finish, delicately steering Morgan Rogers’ low cross into the far corner, was his 75th league goal for Villa, nudging him past Gabby Agbonlahor to claim the record outright. The result guarantees Villa a top-seven finish and European football next season, at the very least in the form of a UEFA Conference League spot. Yet the ambitions at Villa Park are now clearly aimed higher.  A closer look at what happened Until the winner, there had been few clearcut chances. Marco Asensio hit the post with the game’s first notable effort on 43 minutes and then Arrizabalaga saved well from Boubacar Kamara and Cash.  The home side struggled to test the Villa ke...

 Aston Villa 3 - 3 Liverpool Aston Villa pulled off a thrilling late comeback against Liverpool at Villa Park to secure a crucial point in the battle for fourth place in the Premier League. Villa had the chance to seal a Champions League spot with a win, setting the stage for an electric atmosphere ahead of kickoff, highlighted by a special address to the fans from Hollywood icon and avid supporter Tom Hanks. However, Unai Emery's squad found themselves trailing 3-1 with just five minutes remaining, seemingly leaving the door ajar for Tottenham, but two goals from substitute Jhon Duran turned the tide, securing an improbable draw. The early festivities took a hit within minutes when goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez's unfortunate blunder saw him deflect Harvey Elliott's cross into his own net, leaving the Holte End in disbelief. Villa then rallied as Youri Tielemans slammed home an equaliser after 12 minutes, only for Liverpool to regain the lead through Cody Gakpo, exploit...

Aston Villa 2 - 1 Nottingham Forest Aston Villa boosted their hopes of Champions League qualification with a nervy 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest, surviving a spirited second-half comeback in an open and entertaining contest. Author - Kieran M Stadium - Villa Park Villa looked to be cruising after a blistering start at Villa Park. Morgan Rogers opened the scoring with a cool finish following a well-timed run, and just two minutes later Donyell Malen doubled the lead by steering home Ian Maatsen’s cross from close range. With less than 15 minutes played, Unai Emery’s side appeared in full control. To their credit, Forest recovered their composure after a disastrous opening and gradually worked their way back into the match. Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi both went close before the break as the visitors began to ask questions of the Villa defence. Forest’s improved tempo continued into the second half and they were rewarded when substitute Jota Silva turned smartly inside the ...

Aston Villa 3 - 2 PSG (PSG won 5-4 on aggregate) Aston Villa came agonisingly close to pulling off a famous comeback against Paris Saint-Germain, only to fall short on a night of high drama and raw emotion in the Champions League. Author - Thomas J Stadium - Villa Park   Trailing 3-1 from the first leg, Villa’s hopes of reaching the semi-finals were dealt a huge blow early on, as two goals in the opening 30 minutes appeared to settle the tie. Emiliano Martínez’s uncharacteristic error gifted Achraf Hakimi the opener, before Nuno Mendes added a second to leave the hosts needing four unanswered goals. But Villa, roared on by a ferocious home crowd, refused to lie down. Youri Tielemans gave them a lifeline with a deflected effort just after the half-hour mark, and from there, the match descended into glorious chaos. READ MORE:  Champions League: 2024/2025 READ MORE:  Barca qualify despite scare against Dortmund The second half was pure theatre. John McGinn ignited the co...