Aston Villa booked their spot in the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League after an enthralling clash with Lille on Thursday night.
With the tie locked at 3-3 on aggregate after extra-time at the Stade Pierre Mauroy, it went to penalties to determine who would advanced to the last four of the competition.
READ MORE: What Unai Emery said in assessment of Villa’s dramatic win over Lille
Fortunately, Villa were able to prevail and will now face Olympiacos in the semi-finals next month as we look to try and secure our place in the final on May 29, but we’ll certainly look back on this tie with Lille as a key moment if we can indeed go all the way.
Focus will quickly switch to Bournemouth on Sunday as we look to solidify fourth place in the Premier League standings, with Villa continuing our pursuit of a Champions League qualification spot for next season alongside our push for a major trophy this year.
Emery will know Villa have to raise their game
It was clear from the first leg that this was going to be a huge test for us as Lille are a talented side. However, Villa didn’t show up in the 90 minutes and we really did risk going out with a whimper.
Whether it was an inability to tactically make adjustments to break their press and find some rhythm and tempo to our play or individuals across the pitch having poor displays, or perhaps a combination of both, it was a frustrating and tough watch for well over an hour.
In turn, Emery will know best that we’ll have to step our level up for the semi-finals if we wish to advance, as although there could be an element of fatigue involved or simply just coming up against a very tough opponent and matched up against us really well, we can’t risk being that poor again as the outcome may well be different.
Emi Martínez emerges as the hero again
Martinez just loves a penalty shootout, doesn’t he? The Villa shot-stopper thrived off the pressure and hostile reception as he ultimately emerged as our hero with his two saves.
It was a dramatic sequence of events which included a booking, but the Argentine World Cup winner held his nerve and led us through to the last four with his quality and experience coming to the fore.
We’ll miss his presence in the first leg against Olympiacos as he’s expected to serve a suspension, but we needed our leading players to stand up in this game as we struggled, and Martinez certainly did that.
Matty Cash decisive on his return
Despite having missed our last handful of games due to a hamstring injury, Cash returned to the Villa XI on Thursday night and put in a huge shift for the team as well as bringing an important balance back to the defence.
Not only did he complete the 120 minutes, but he scored the all-important goal that kept us in the tie and forced extra-time, while he was our biggest threat from open play during the game with his runs into advanced areas down that right side.
Further, the Villa right-back produced an excellent spot-kick in the shootout to help us secure victory, and so he deserves a lot of credit for the impact he made in his first game back and it’s a real boost to have him available again.
Konsa a class above
As Villa continued to struggle to keep possession and show any sign of building sustained pressure, Ezri Konsa didn’t look fazed one bit throughout the clash.
The Villa centre-half was back in his natural role and it showed, as he was calm and composed with the ball to help us retain possession and take the sting out of the game, while he was switched on and incisive with his defensive actions.
This was a really difficult night for Villa given Lille’s performance and the atmosphere, and we needed big characters to step up to show maturity and solidity. Konsa did exactly that as he continues to excel on this stage.
Midfield conundrum only has one solution
Although Emery persists with it and seemingly believes in its potential, this game strengthened the case against having Youri Tielemans and Douglas Luiz in our midfield pivot.
Villa struggled throughout to beat the Lille press and get our midfield duo involved, as our passing lanes out from the back were blocked off and neither Tielemans nor Luiz could break free into space to influence the game and subsequently didn’t have anywhere near enough touches to make an impact.
Particularly in these games away from home where we need to impose ourselves in midfield to gain a foothold and some control, John McGinn’s physicality, tenacity and energy must be utilised next to one of those two, while he also offers more protection from a defensive perspective.
That’s not to say that he can replicate what Boubacar Kamara gives us, but he does tick some crucial boxes and makes us less light-weight and vulnerable in the middle of the pitch.