Unai Emery will be raging as Aston Villa reveal makes Tammy Abraham call even worse
Aston Villa were denied what looked to be a definite penalty during their win over Brighton, and Unai Emery certainly wasn’t happy about it.
Villa beat Brighton 1-0 on Wednesday evening, with a late Jack Hinshelwood own goal ensuring they secured all three points.
Matty Cash was left out of the squad for the contest, struggling with inflammation in his knee as Emery’s injury issues deepened.
However, the Midlands giants managed to get over the line to move six points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal, although the Gunners have a game in hand.
Tammy Abraham denied clear penalty
With just five minutes remaining against Brighton and the scores still at 0-0, Abraham was blocked off in the penalty area as he looked certain to score.
Peter Bankes waved appeals away on the field, and the video assistant referee decided not to overturn the decision.
Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett believes Bankes made the wrong call, and should’ve awarded Villa a spot-kick for the challenge on Abraham.
Hackett exclusively told Villa News that the centre-forward had been clearly impeded in the penalty area, with excessive force used.
Luckily for Emery’s side, Hinshelwood headed Leon Bailey’s corner into his own net just minutes later, to ensure all three points stayed at Villa Park.
Aston Villa’s penalty woes continue
It’s not the first time that Aston Villa have been on the wrong end of a decision this season, and the Midlands side have now gone almost 10 months without being awarded a penalty in the Premier League.
Wildly, it has now been 296 days since Emery’s side were given a spot-kick.
The last time Villa had a top-flight penalty was back in April 2025, against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Bernardo Silva opened the scoring for City before loanee Marcus Rashford converted from 12 yards to equalise.
Villa couldn’t hold on, though, with Matheus Nunes’ 94th-minute winner ensuring they went home empty-handed.
Emery will not be happy about that at all, as it’s clear they’re going to have to do it the hard way at Villa Park yet again.