Aston Villa will have to wait to secure a place in next season’s Champions League despite scoring twice in the final five minutes to earn a breathless draw against Liverpool.
Unai Emery’s side knew victory would guarantee fourth place and end Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes of overtaking them in the Premier League.
But Villa, watched by Hollywood star Tom Hanks, started calamitously, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez completely fluffing a cross and somehow contriving to fumble the ball into his own net within two minutes.
The home side soon equalised, Ollie Watkins crossing for Youri Tielemans to convert.
But Liverpool, already certain to finish third, restored their lead when Cody Gakpo tapped in from close range.
In a game packed with excitement and VAR reviews, Jarell Quansah headed in to give Liverpool breathing space and Villa looked down and out.
But everything changed when Jhon Duran was introduced as a substitute and he scored twice in the dying stages to earn what could be a precious point for Villa.
Despite the hosts’ late heroics, the result still gives Tottenham added incentive to beat Manchester City on Tuesday, a result that would take the top-four fight to the last day and hand the title initiative to their rivals Arsenal.
Jacob Tanswell, James Pearce and Mark Carey address the game’s key talking points.
A Hollywood-esque script for Hanks
The presence of actor Hanks offered Villa a fitting opportunity to write the perfect script and secure Champions League football next season.
The stage was well set before kick-off. Hanks came out of the tunnel and spoke to the crowd, while every home supporter had a claret or blue flag on their seats, waving as the players came out, complemented by fireballs, smoke and a cranking-up of the PA system.
Tom Hanks made his second visit to Villa Park, having watched the game against Arsenal in February 2023 (Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)
But Villa fluffed their lines in the first half. Martinez set the tone, somehow turning the ball into his own net after a slight deflection off Pau Torres. The keeper, who has now been responsible for three own goals this season — two more than anyone else in the league — half-caught the ball before dropping it and letting it roll agonisingly over the line.
Aston Villa fans look away 🫣
What a start at Villa Park! 🤯⚡ pic.twitter.com/VbGsconOpv
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) May 13, 2024
That moment deflated the home crowd, though Villa actually played some of their best football of recent weeks in the first half.
But a common issue — a lack of ruthlessness in both boxes — remained, with the goalkeeper-clanger-of-the-season soon accompanied by a strong miss-of-the-season contender by Diego Carlos.
Trailing 2-1, Leon Bailey cut the ball across the goal-line but Carlos, with Watkins directly behind him and ready to tap in from maybe a yard or two out, got a touch but failed to direct his effort into an empty net. Emery covered his face with his hands and Hanks, having celebrated Tielemans’ equaliser, sat quietly in the Villa Park box, ruing those avoidable errors.
But like any good Hollywood movie, there was a plot twist and a thrilling ending.
Introduced in the 79th minute with Villa 3-1 down and short of belief, Villa’s subsitutes re-energised the stadium.
Duran scored his first after Calum Chambers — who was also brought on at the same time — stole in to win the ball after Liverpool attempted to play out from a goal kick. Duran received the ball, cut onto his left foot and rifled low past Alisson.
Then Villa Park really came alive. Emery started cajoling, jumping up and down and finally, Villa got a slice of luck, Moussa Diaby’s shot deflecting off Duran and going into the back of the net.
Villa Park erupted and Hanks grabbed those close around him in celebration.
Jacob Tanswell
A game that showed why Liverpool’s title hopes faltered
With 140 goals in all competitions in 2023-24, this is now the second-most prolific season in Liverpool’s history.
Only in 2021-22, when they scored 147 under Klopp, have they netted more frequently They got a helping hand at Villa Park with Martinez’s early blunder but there was plenty to admire about their attacking fluency.
Joe Gomez’s overlapping run and shot led to Gakpo tapping home the second. Then in the second half it was Quansah’s first Premier League goal — a towering header from Harvey Elliott’s delivery — which put them firmly in the ascendancy.
Missed chances at a pivotal stage of the campaign certainly cost them as their title challenge wilted with the setbacks against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and Everton, but what really denied them a shot at the big prize in Klopp’s farewell season is defensive frailty and how it reared its ugly head at Villa Park.
It’s now just one clean sheet in their past 16 league matches and you can’t expect to win titles with that kind of record.
It was far too easy for Villa to restore parity in the first half when Watkins got the better of Quansah and pulled the ball back to the unmarked Tielemans.
In fact it was far too easy for the hosts to repeatedly get in behind Liverpool’s backline. Too many glaring gaps to exploit, too many runners not tracked. The midfield didn’t provide sufficient protection. Possession was conceded cheaply in dangerous areas.
Ultimately, Liverpool paid the price for their sloppiness as Duran’s dramatic late double denied Klopp’s side victory.
The wounds were self-inflicted and it would have been even worse but for Alisson’s fine save from Diaby in stoppage time.
It will be down to new boss Arne Slot to address that weakness this summer.
James Pearce
Is Klopp right to have Elliott regrets?
“It’s not like I go back and think, ‘Where did we go wrong here and there?’, but if I regret one thing a little bit it’s that Harvey didn’t play often enough maybe.”
Jurgen Klopp was in a reflective mood in the build-up to his final away trip with Liverpool, and it was the youngest man named in Liverpool’s starting line-up against Aston Villa who was the topic of conversation.
On the face of it, Elliott’s 33 Premier League appearances this season would suggest he has been a regular feature of Klopp’s side, but just 10 league starts show he has not been trusted as much as his talent suggests he might have been.
It is easy to forget Elliott is just 21 years old, given how much he has been a part of the first team setup since he joined at 16, but the boyhood Liverpool fan looks to be taking more responsibility every time he is on the field.
Within two minutes, it was his driving run and one-two with Mohamed Salah that led to Martinez’s own goal. Three minutes into the second half, he advised Trent Alexander-Arnold to step aside before delivering a delicious free kick for Quansah to head into the top corner.
Liverpool’s tempo increases when Elliott is on the ball. He can play the neat passes in tight spaces, he can drive forward when the space opens up. Not to mention how fearless he is out of possession, chasing down Aston Villa’s centre-backs as if it was personal.
With Klopp departing this summer, he will not have the opportunity to atone for his regret towards Elliott’s limited minutes in the Premier League. With the 21-year-old’s talent growing every game, you suspect the incoming Liverpool coach is unlikely to have the same feeling next season.
Mark Carey
What do Villa need to do to secure a Champions League place?
Just as in Greece against Olympiacos last week, Villa’s players gradually became racked with frustration, knowing another key game and opportunity was drifting away.
At 3-1 down and after Watkins had a goal ruled out for offside, tensions spilled over between the forward and Bailey.
An unhappy Bailey made a beeline for Watkins, with Douglas Luiz needing to check the winger from getting into a full-on confrontation.
But it was all smiles after Duran’s late interventions and his goals mean the situation is now simple for Villa and Tottenham. Spurs must win both of their remaining matches, against Manchester City on Tuesday and Sheffield United on Sunday, to have a chance. A point for Villa at Crystal Palace will likely be enough, but a win will guarantee Champions League football next season.
Jacob Tanswell
Did Klopp manage to keep his cool?
Klopp grinned after being reminded pre-match that he was one yellow card away from being banned from the touchline for his Anfield farewell.
“And they gave me Simon Hooper! That’s the biggest challenge they could find but I should be fine,” he said.
Klopp has previous with Hooper, who was the referee at Tottenham in September when Luis Diaz had a goal wrongly disallowed for offside by VAR after a breakdown in communication between the officials.
How he desperately tried to bite his lip during the first half at Villa Park as a series of free kick decisions went against his team. After 40 minutes it was 9-0 in Villa’s favour in that regard.
At one stage Klopp pulled his cap over his eyes and bowed his head to hide his dismay. Then in the second half he put his hand over his mouth in disbelief when Hooper didn’t penalise a backpass that goalkeeper Martinez picked up.
A booking was successfully avoided and Klopp was serenaded at regular intervals by the 3,000-strong travelling fans as they repeatedly chanted: ‘I’m so glad that Jurgen is a Red.’
GO DEEPER
From Munich to Manchester – Liverpool’s greatest away days under Klopp
His side couldn’t hold on but he has made their dreams come true over the past nine years and a spine-tingling send-off is guaranteed at Anfield on Sunday.
James Pearce
What next for Aston Villa?
Sunday, May 19: Crystal Palace (H), Premier League, 4pm UK, 2pm ET
What next for Liverpool?
Sunday, May 19: Wolverhampton Wanderers (H), Premier League, 4pm UK, 2pm ET
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(Top photo: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
