Burnley 2 Aston Villa 2: Flemming’s Late Equalizer Keeps Villa’s Champions League Hopes Alive
Now that’s a great example of returning to reality.
Heroics in Europe on Thursday, followed by a challenge in East Lancashire just 72 hours later… against the team with the worst home record in the league.
Aston Villa’s position in the Champions League might heavily rely on a crucial 90 minutes in Istanbul.
They arrived at already-relegated Burnley after a dominant win against Nottingham Forest, securing their spot in a Europa League clash with Freiburg in a fortnight.
A victory against the Clarets, who had only managed two wins and scored a mere 15 goals at home all season – the lowest in the Premier League – would have reinforced their standing among Europe’s elite well ahead of the season’s end.
Instead, they struggled to secure a draw, leaving them just four points clear of sixth-placed Bournemouth.
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With their next two matches against Liverpool on Friday and title-challenging Manchester City to follow, Villa have left the door ajar for the Cherries.
This time, there could be no excuses as this wasn’t an under-strength team, unlike last week’s dismal performance.
A week prior, Unai Emery deployed a completely different squad that fell to Spurs. This time, only three adjustments were made – yet they faced humiliation once again.
It should be noted, their shortcomings were not solely to blame, as they were up against a Burnley team determined to leave a mark before their relegation.
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Led bravely by dedicated striker Zian Flemming, alongside the skilled Hannibal Mejri, Loum Tchaouna, and Lesley Ugochukwa.
When the latter two teamed up for Ugochukwu to unleash a long shot, Emi Martinez should have caught or deflected it, but he redirected it back into the danger zone, allowing Jaidon Anthony to finish with an easy tap-in.
It could have been two when Tchaouna set up Flemming as Ezri Konsa faltered, but Flemming shot high and wide despite having a good aim.
Despite their fluid passing, Villa rarely troubled keeper Max Weiss on his Premier League debut.
True, he was almost caught out when John McGinn slipped him the ball, but Ross Barkley couldn’t control it and shot wide. Yet, he made up for it soon after.
By that point, Villa had already seen a goal disallowed by VAR after Ollie Watkins scored from close range.
There was genuinely no reason for the aspiring World Cup striker to be offside before receiving Morgan Rogers’ cross.
Villa were building momentum; when Rogers set up Barkley, his shot forced Weiss into a dive to push it away, merely delaying the inevitable.
From McGinn’s resulting corner, Barkley – unmarked across the box – climbed to head in a brilliant equalizer.
Just before the hour mark, Villa took the lead with one of the most straightforward goals you’ll ever witness.
Keeper Emi Martinez, known for initiating attacks, was slightly outside his box when he launched the ball downfield.
The long pass sailed between Axel Tuanzebe and Maxime Esteve; Watkins expertly cushioned it with his chest before finishing past Weiss.
Game over? Clarets defeated? Mission accomplished? Not quite. Burnley may be relegated, but they weren’t done yet.
Shortly after Watkins’ goal, Flemming scored the best goal of the match, finishing coolly after a lovely flick from Hannibal Mejri.
It would have been the Burnley striker’s second goal if only he had longer studs, narrowly missing Hannibal’s earlier low cross.
Villa responded once more and certainly had chances to solidify their Champions League position, especially through McGinn.
There remains a strong chance they could qualify through the Premier League, but don’t rule out the need to win the Europa League to achieve that after this.