Aston Villa clinched a spot in the upcoming Champions League after defeating Liverpool 4-2 at Villa Park on Friday. This defeat leaves Liverpool’s chances of competing in Europe’s premier tournament in uncertainty.
A second-half double from Ollie Watkins, along with goals from Morgan Rogers and John McGinn, ensures that Villa, now in fourth place, secures one of the Premier League’s five Champions League slots.
Liverpool, currently in fifth place, must remain cautious as they head into their final match of the season next weekend.
Bournemouth trails the Reds by four points, with Brighton two points further behind. However, both teams still have two matches to play.
Villa can approach their upcoming Europa League final against Freiburg this Wednesday with the confidence of knowing they have secured a spot in the Champions League.
Unai Emery’s side is now focused on claiming their first major trophy in three decades as they head to Istanbul.
“It’s a fantastic performance and a wonderful way to finish the season at Villa Park,” said captain McGinn to Sky Sports. “We’ve made this club a Champions League club again, which allows us to enjoy the game on Wednesday.”
“We have a shot at some silverware, but qualifying for the Champions League is an incredible achievement.”
This victory marks a continued successful era for Emery, who previously led Villa to the Champions League for the first time in 41 years just two seasons ago.
With this win on Friday, Villa also snapped a Premier League losing streak to Liverpool that dated back to October 2020.
Liverpool had a strong start, with Cody Gakpo having a goal disallowed for offside and Emiliano Martínez making a save from a long-range effort by Dominik Szoboszlai.
However, Villa regained their composure and took the lead just before halftime when Rogers delivered a precise right-footed shot into the net following a well-executed corner.
Liverpool equalized through Virgil van Dijk’s header, but Villa quickly seized control as the game progressed.
Watkins had a goal negated for offside but capitalized on a slip by Szoboszlai shortly after, netting what became the eventual game-winner.
He added his second of the match in the 73rd minute after two exceptional saves from Mamardashvili.
With this performance, Watkins has now scored six goals in his last seven league matches, consistently threatening a Liverpool defense that appeared vulnerable to Villa’s attacks.
Emiliano Buendía hit the crossbar with a long-range strike, matched at the other end by Rio Ngumoha for Liverpool. McGinn then capped off the evening with a beautifully placed shot into the far corner just two minutes before the final whistle.
This match marked the first occasion Liverpool has conceded four goals in a Premier League game during Arne Slot’s two seasons as coach, raising their season total to 51 goals allowed, the highest total in a 38-game Premier League season.
“We’ve let in too many goals, and we haven’t scored enough,” said Slot, acknowledging that his side struggled after going down in the second half.
“After the second goal, we fell apart. We managed to make it 4-2, but controlling their pace, intensity, and quality was challenging.”
Van Dijk managed to score a late header to make it 4-2, but it provided little consolation to a fatigued-looking Liverpool side.
Liverpool’s final match of the season is against Brentford on May 24, while Villa will face Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on the same day.
Contributions to this report were made by The Associated Press and ESPN Research.