Exclusive: Ex-PGMOL chief reacts to controversial Aston Villa v Chelsea footage
Aston Villa fought back to earn a brilliant win over Chelsea but should also have been awarded a penalty, according to ex-PGMOL chief Keith Hackett.
Unai Emery‘s side trailed 1-0 at the break at Villa Park courtesy of Enzo Fernandez’s ninth-minute opener on Saturday.
However, Marco Asensio scored twice after the break with Marcus Rashford providing two assists as Villa turned the game around on its head.
But there was a moment of contention with the game locked at 1-1 that might have made life even easier for Villa had referee Michael Oliver and VAR Paul Tierney taken a different view of a moment of controversy.
Marc Cucurella gets away with one in Aston Villa v Chelsea
Villa had already been aided by VAR when an offside decision for their first goal had rightly been overturned to allow Asensio to celebrate his first.
But there could definitely have been a penalty awarded when Chelsea full-back Marc Cucurella was roughly holding the shirt of Lamare Bogarde just inside the penalty area.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, Hackett certainly thought Emery’s men were hard done by and said a spot-kick should have been awarded.
He said: “This is a clear holding offence inside the penalty area. A penalty kick should have been awarded to Aston Villa.”
Aston Villa have plenty to play for
The good news is, on this occasion, a moment of controversy did not count against Aston Villa as Emery’s men turned on the style to deservedly turn things around against Chelsea.
It has been a season where moments of glee have been shared with disappointments but with the addition of Champions League football to the schedule you can absolutely understand why.
| Stat | Marcus Rashford v Chelsea |
| Minutes played | 45 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Pass accuracy (%) | 94 |
| Chances created | 3 |
| Dribbles completed | 2 |
| Duels won | 2 |
Even accounting for that, though, Villa aren’t a million miles away from the top four (the top five could be enough to get back in the Champions League, too), while they have an FA Cup fifth-round tie with Cardiff City to look forward to as well a last-16 clash against Club Brugge in the Champions League.
Essentially, Villa are in a great spot as things stand and there is still plenty to play for over the next few months. After some shrewd winter business in the market, which saw Villa bring in Rashford and Asensio, then there could be a lot to celebrate between now and May.