Aston Villa Academy: Under-21s blow away Blackburn Rovers in Premier League Cup riot
Aston Villa Under-21s finished off 2022 in stunning fashion as they turned on the style in their 4-0 victory over Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League Cup.
Several youngsters who have recently featured in Unai Emery’s first-team squad were on display at Bodymoor Heath on Wednesday afternoon (21 December), including Lamare Bogarde in defence as well as Tommi O’Reilly and Arjan Raikhy, who occupied the wide midfield positions that the Spaniard so often uses.
Three straight defeats – albeit narrow – and a draw all but knocked Villa out of the Champions League formatted competition, but Tony Carss’ side looked the far superior outfit as they overturned the 2-1 defeat in the reverse fixture last month.
The Young Lions got off to the perfect start when O’Reilly curled home a beautiful strike after just six minutes before setting up Declan Frith with a well-weighted through-ball just two minutes later.
O’Reilly’s goal, in particular, was one for the highlights reel, cutting in off his right wing, beating his defender and whipping a left-footed shot into the far corner of the Rovers net – once again highlighting his quality from wide positions.
It could have been four or five by half-time, with Josh Feeney, Ruben Shakpoke, Frith and O’Reilly all going close to adding to the scoresheet.
Eighteen-year-old defender Bogarde, who featured for Unai Emery’s first-team squad during the World Cup hiatus, added a third with a smart finish shortly after the break before Omari Kellyman scored with his first few touches after coming off the bench.
Unfortunately, Villa couldn’t finish off a five-star display with a fifth goal, with Feeney going close after connecting well with Frederic Guilbert’s free-kick, but the display will give Carss’ side a big boost heading into the New Year.
With his side all but knocked out of the Premier League Cup, the focus will now return to the Premier League 2 Division 2, which currently sees Villa sit in 8th position after ten games.
In other Aston Villa news, Hannah Hampton can still kick into top gear for Villa women despite her stop-start WSL season.