Super-sub Youri Tielemans proved to be the difference-maker, scoring eight minutes from time to give Aston Villa a vital victory over Basel in the Europa League.
Unai Emery’s side’s fifth win of the tournament increases their chances of finishing in the top eight, which would automatically qualify them for the round of 16, and they currently sit third in the standings.
The Spanish manager made eight changes to the team that defeated Premier League leaders Arsenal last time out, but it appeared to have little effect on his side’s early possession.
Poor defending from former Liverpool player Xherdan Shaqiri allowed Evan Guesand, despite being on deck, to turn and explore the bottom corner while swinging his leg towards the ball.
However, this seemed to wake up the hosts and just after they thought they had equalized solely through VAR, with Leo Leroy having his goal ruled out for offside early in the game, Basel equalized when Flavius Daniliuk beat Marco Bizzotto’s free-kick to equalize.
Villa withstood late pressure
Emery relied on the cavalry to strengthen Villa’s control of the game, and it paid off immediately as half-time substitute Tielemans restored the lead with a classy finish from the edge of the box.
Just like in the first half, Basel improved in the second period and continued to apply pressure until the end. Ibrahim Salah thought he had snatched a point in stoppage time, but his header at goal hit an unsuspecting Morgan Rodgers and narrowly missed the target.
Basel were unable to apply pressure in the final stages of the game.
Villa were able to grab the victory and consolidate their third place in the table. In other words, there is a possibility that they will be just one win away from securing a place in the final 16 of the tournament. Basel, on the other hand, remain outside the play-offs in 26th place.
Emery satisfied despite tense ending
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery told TNT Sports.
“We knew before the game the difficulties we would face today and looking back at our performance in the last game, which was a great battle against Arsenal, it will not be easy to get back the same hard-working spirit, structure and mentality.
“Today we struggled and in the last 10 minutes we were close to a draw, but I’m happy that we played almost 90 minutes and got this win. We know it’s going to be difficult to beat them here because they’ve won the last seven games in Europe.”
Aston Villa had to withstand late pressure to protect all three points
“Our idea when the season started was to try to manage all the players, give them opportunities to play, help us and make them feel comfortable in our structure.”
“I like how they’ve responded and how we’re building the team more or less with each player.”
On managing player minutes and utilizing substitutes:
“That was the plan. Try to start with Amadou (Onana) and Lamarre (Bogard). In the last game we needed all our midfielders, because they needed physical help.”
“Today I was able to manage their minutes, Yuri and then Kamara. Other players were influenced as well, like (Olie) Watkins, Morgan (Rodgers), John McGinn. Of course we needed them in the end.”
“They were compact and focused more on defense than offense and we had to win duels because they were pushing really hard in the last 15 minutes.”
Tielemans: “I don’t know why teams drop us, but I like it”
Aston Villa’s Youri Tielemans told TNT Sport:
“I think if you watch our game you can see we weren’t as fluent as we could have been. I think we could have been better in certain aspects of the game, but it’s really good to go home with a win.”
“Our current situation is very good. We have two more games left. We have very tough games away against Fenerbahçe and then at home against Salzburg. It will be a very difficult game.”
“We just want to win both games and see where we are. The first two spots will be great. If not, we can win the remaining spots and hopefully qualify.”
On why Aston Villa score so often from long range:
“I’m not sure. Sometimes the team drops deep, but I really like having that kind of space on the edge of the box.”
“Other players are also hitting some good shots in their lockers. We hope to continue like this and score a lot of goals from outside and inside the box.”
What will happen to Aston Villa?
Aston Villa’s next Europa League match will be played at Fenerbahce on January 22nd (kick-off 5.45pm). Unai Emery’s side will host Red Bull Salzburg in their final match on January 29th (kick-off 8pm).
