Credit: Imago

Dan Godfrey

Wed 16 April 2025 11:30, UK

Aston Villa were on the verge of creating Champions League history on Tuesday night, but it was not to be on a rollercoaster of emotions against Paris Saint-Germain.

After it had initially looked like PSG were going to put Unai Emery’s men to the sword at Villa Park (15 April), the Villans were three-quarters of the way to inexplicably levelling the tie.

Villa supporters remained at full-time to offer their rousing applause to the players, who will now avert their attention to qualifying for the competition again next season, as well as giving the FA Cup their best shot as a very realistic trophy opportunity.

Emery ‘sack’ demanded by some after key decision v PSG

Supporters of Aston Villa and beyond watched on as the troops in claret and blue almost stormed to the unlikeliest of Champions League stories.

There have seldom been many times when PSG have been rocked the way they were on Tuesday night – the powerhouse machine of Luis Enrique remain unbeaten in Ligue 1 this season, a title they have already mathematically sealed.

Former Parc des Princes boss Emery did garner some criticism for his in-game decisions, namely the choice to withdraw Marcus Rashford despite his superb performance which had the Parisians on the ropes for large spells of the second half.

Emery had already sprung a surprise in selecting Rashford to lead the line and once again benched Ollie Watkins, who only saw the pitch for 15 minutes when a solitary goal was required.

Some from Villa and of other persuasions ridiculously called for Emery to be sacked – not reactionary at all!

Aston Villa still have chance for glorious season

Aston Villa are still shaping up excellently for the tail end of the season, despite their heartache against PSG.

Victory over hapless Southampton last Saturday (12 April) – inspired in truth by the introduction of Watkins – has set the tone for a huge battle for the top five in the Premier League.

At present, there are five teams battling it out for three places inside the Champions League qualification cut-off. Villa are fighting alongside Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United, Manchester City and Chelsea. Anyone else is certainly deemed a serious outsider at this stage.

In the FA Cup, it will be interesting to see how the Villans fare as bookies’ favourites when they take on Crystal Palace at Wembley later this month (26 April). City and Forest meet under the arch the same weekend in the adjacent semi-final.