Alan Shearer makes ‘special’ Villa Park claim for Aston Villa showdown v PSG
Alan Shearer has high expectations of the UEFA Champions League showdown between Aston Villa and Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.
Aston Villa have their work cut out for them after suffering a 3-1 defeat at the hands of PSG at the Parc des Princes in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie on Wednesday, 9 April.
The game in Paris started on a positive note for Unai Emery’s side, with Morgan Rogers putting them in front 35 minutes after kick-off.
However, not only did PSG take the lead through Khvicha Kvaratskhelia after Desire Doue drew them level, but they also handed a crushing blow to Villa with a late Nuno Mendes goal.
Shearer predicts Aston Villa showdown v PSG
Aston Villa now face an uphill task to overturn their two-goal deficit against Luis Enrique’s men at Villa Park on 15 April.
Emery and Co. notably have a Premier League clash with Southampton coming up on Saturday (12 April), but Shearer is already looking forward to the European showdown in B6.
| PSG | Stat | Aston Villa |
| 29 | Shots | 7 |
| 10 | Shots on target | 2 |
| 76% | Possession | 24% |
| 841 | Passes | 271 |
| 94% | Pass accuracy | 75% |
The Premier League icon believes the atmosphere under the lights at Villa Park will be ‘special’, having experienced the ‘incredible’ vibe himself earlier this season.
He suggested that the atmosphere at Villa Park gives Aston Villa a chance to cause an upset over PSG, although he does not realistically see that happening.
Shearer feels overturning a two-goal deficit against PSG is not an ‘impossible’ task for the Birmingham-based club.
“Villa Park on European nights is a special place to be”, Shearer wrote in his column on the Betfair website (11 April).
“I’m going to be there on Tuesday, looking forward to it, doing the game.
“Because of the ability that Paris Saint-Germain have, they’re a different team, they’re more of a team than they ever have been before.
“Because of that, Luis Enrique has got them really well set up. I can’t see Villa overturning it.
“Villa Park is a great ground and for European nights it’s been incredible. I saw the atmosphere against Celtic and against Bayern Munich.“It’ll be better than that, but they’re playing a very talented side, who are united, who are together and they’ve got great ability all over the park.
“That’s going to be the problem – I think it’s going to be a bridge too far for Villa but not impossible.”
Villa eye shock result v PSG
Aston Villa will not be under any sort of pressure in the second leg against PSG, as no one would expect them to overturn a two-goal deficit.
Emery and Co. will be aware that they have nothing to lose when they lock horns with the French giants in four days’ time.
With the Villa Park crowd rallying behind them, the Villans can still dream of earning a shock victory over PSG and booking their place in the Champions League semi-finals.