Aston Villa: Dan Bardell reacts to what he saw in draw v Ajax, ‘absolutely atrocious’
Aston Villa played out a goalless draw against Ajax despite the referee being “absolutely atrocious” throughout the game, according to Dan Bardell.
It was a match with very few chances as they largely cancelled each other out, with both sides recording just one shot on target in the Europa Conference League last-16 clash on Thursday (7 March).
But there was some controversy towards the end of the game when Ezri Konsa was sent off for Villa with seven minutes left to play before Ajax defender Tristan Gooijer was given his marching orders just three minutes later as the first leg ended 0-0 in Amsterdam.
Bardell believes the Villans should have enough quality at their disposal to beat the Dutch giants at Villa Park when they go head-to-head again on 14 March.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, Bardell said: “The referee was absolutely atrocious, he ruined the game in some ways. He was very inconsistent with his decisions.
“Some of the things he was dishing cards out for were a little bit strange, so I did think the referee ruined the tempo and the flow of the game a little bit.
“In fairness to Ajax, they probably put in one of their better displays of the season. I thought they were quite resolute and up for the game. They went direct at times and caused Villa problems in behind.
“It won’t get talked about, but I thought Emi Martinez was absolutely brilliant the way he was just sweeping up, it’s almost become the norm. It’s almost like watching Manuel Neuer now.
“It’s not a bad result for Villa, it sets up next week quite nicely. I would expect Villa to win a home tie against an Ajax team at Villa Park and progress to the next round.
“Pau Torres has got 45 minutes under his belt, which is important for the massive game on Sunday against Tottenham.
“I think there are positives to take away from it and very few negatives. I didn’t think we were at our best, but for a first-leg game, 0-0 is absolutely fine.”
Aston Villa in good position for second leg against Ajax
It was a game where Villa perhaps would have wanted to test Ajax more, but they can be reasonably happy with the draw in Amsterdam.
There is no doubt that they have more than enough quality in their ranks to go and secure a victory over the Dutch club and they will be fully expecting to make it into the quarter-finals of the competition.
But the immediate focus for Unai Emery’s side will be on the game against Tottenham on Sunday (10 March), where they have a chance to cement their place in the top four of the Premier League.
In other Aston Villa news, a journalist has mooted a high-profile exit after a £110million+ development has emerged.
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