Neil Lennon flummoxed by what Pau Torres did in Olympiacos v Aston Villa
Aston Villa defender Pau Torres was poor in their UEFA Conference League semi-final, with Neil Lennon shocked at his non-existent defending for Olympiacos’ opening goal.
Torres was nowhere to be seen as Villa were caught on the counter-attack 10 minutes into their must-win second leg, and left Lennon questioning “where Pau Torres is” as Ayoub El Kaabi scored from close range.
Villa went into the match already 4-2 down on aggregate, and the poor to the game saw them concede again on the break, with Torres unable to keep pace with the Piraeus striker.
On co-commentary for BBC Radio 5 Live, (9 May, 8:14pm), Lennon said after the goal: “I don’t know where Pau Torres is and El Kaabi taps into an open net. Totally against the run of play.”
Pau Torres puts in horror display for Aston Villa
In a game Aston Villa needed to win, the last thing they needed to occur at the other end was haphazard defending.
However, that’s what they got from Torres, who was caught short at the back as the Villans pressed numbers forward in a bid to chase down their two-goal deficit.
The Spaniard was something of a passenger in defence for large swathes of the game despite scoring 7.1 on SofaScore, failing to put in a single interception, making just one block, and winning 0% of his attempted tackles.
Torres did make four clearances and completed two key passes, but also lost possession on seven occasions as he tried to carry the ball out of defence.
Villa, and Torres were exposed at the back yet again with 12 minutes left on the clock, and El Kaabi found the back of the net to make them pay once more. VAR had a long check on whether the striker was offside, but the goal stood and confined Villa would exit the competition 6-2 on aggregate and one step earlier than they’d hoped.
Winning four of his five duels, including three in the air, suggests that Torres was resolute at the back, but his absence on the counter twice meant El Kaabi had all the time in the world to beat Villa’s goalkeeper for the fourth and fifth times across these two legs.
The first goal knocked stuffing out of Villa’s attempted comeback in Piraeus just 10 minutes into the match, and the second from El Kaabi in the final stages sends Olympiacos to the UEFA Conference League decider.
Torres may have been solid enough for much of the game, but his contribution (or lack of) in the crucial moments couldn’t prevent Villa from exiting Europe just before reaching the final hurdle.
In other Aston Villa news, a doctor has issued an “unfortunate” response as footage has emerged of Tyrone Mings with an update on his current situation.
For more Aston Villa news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.