Aston Villa must take Finley Munroe positive from loss v Olympiacos
Youth pair Finley Munroe and Omari Kellyman came on for Aston Villa in the 2-0 defeat to Olympiacos and gave a good account of themselves.
The Villans fell to a 6-2 aggregate loss in the Europa Conference League tie, which saw them knocked out at the semi-final stage.
There were many performances on Thursday (9 May) that were below par, leaving the Villa fans highly frustrated throughout.
This saw Unai Emery give some minutes to young players as the game drifted away from his side.
How did Finley Munroe and Omari Kellyman perform for Aston Villa?
Highly rated Munroe made his first-team Villa debut in Greece after making the bench in four other games this season.
The 19-year-old played 120 minutes just three days before as the Young Lions were knocked out of Premier League 2 by Tottenham .
Although the youngster could only manage seven touches of the ball against Olympiacos, he registered a 100-per-cent pass completion and made an interception [FotMob].
He managed as many interceptions as first-team regular right-back Matty Cash, who featured for 86 minutes [FotMob].
Munroe enjoyed some positive moments and showed he is not afraid to get stuck in, which can only bode well for his future in terms of further first-team opportunities.
Kellyman came on to make his fifth appearance this season under Emery in the Villa first team, meanwhile, and his third showing in the Conference League.
Despite having yet to score or provide an assist, he always impresses Villa fans when he gets on the pitch.
He was given just a four-minute cameo against Olympiacos, where he kept a 75-per-cent pass completion rate [FotMob].
Kellyman was able to win 100 per cent of his duels as he got stuck in where he could. This bettered stars like Moussa Diaby, who could only manage 20 per cent success [FotMob].
A night to forget for most, then, but one to remember for the young Villa duo – and rising star Munroe in particular.
In other Aston Villa news, Emery is “ready to spend” ahead of the summer transfer window at Villa Park after agreeing on a club-record deal
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