View: Rory Wilson continues flying form as Aston Villa U18s reach Premier League Cup semi-final
Rory Wilson continued his fine goalscoring form for the Aston Villa Under-18s as they ran away 4-0 victors over Southampton to reach the semi-finals of the Premier League Cup.
First-half goals from Ewan Simpson and Charlie Lutz propelled Villa into a 2-0 lead at the break before Wilson and Omami Kellyman put the icing on the cake and avenged Villa’s Youth Cup defeat to the Saints earlier this season.
A first-half penalty save by James Wright was the other standout moment of the match, as he denied Will Merry from the spot to keep Villa’s slender 1-0 lead intact during the first half.
The Young Lions will now face one of Sheffield United, Tottenham Hotspur or Charlton Under-18s for a place in the final of the Premier League Cup after this scintillating display of attacking football.
The main man of the hour on Saturday (4 February) was once again Wilson, who continues to move from strength to strength since moving to the West Midlands from Rangers in July and signing his first professional contract with the club.
His goal was your typical poacher’s finish, as Kellyman’s smart run and ball into the box was turned home from close range by the 17-year-old, as he continues to highlight himself as one of most of the highly regarded young strikers in Europe.
The striker simply scores goals for fun and will be a massive coup for the Young Lions in the latter stages of this competition after scoring four goals in five games in it so far.
As the teams get whittled down, and the pressure intensifies, having an ace up your sleeve like Wilson is crucial in a youth competition such as this. The Scottish-born striker is similar in many regards to fellow academy star Louie Barry in his playing style and the ridiculous amount of goals scored at youth level.
There is no doubt that Unai Emery will be keeping a close eye on Wilson in the coming months with the aim to possibly send the youngster out on loan in the football league next season.
Allowing Wilson to ply his trade elsewhere will help him adjust to the harsh realities and physical requirements of professional football.
However, in the meantime, Wilson will hope to continue his fine goalscoring form and blast the Young Lions towards some much-deserved silverware.
In other Aston Villa news, Carla Ward must find a contingency plan in case Rachel Daly gets injured for her women’s side this season.