Emiliano Martinez starred in a drama-filled penalty shoot-out as Aston Villa squeezed past Lille OSC and into the UEFA Europa Conference League semi-finals on Thursday following a late Matty Cash goal in normal time.
Villa led 2-1 from last week’s first leg, but their quest for a first European trophy since 1982 looked doomed when goals from Yusuf Yazici and Benjamin Andre put Lille two up on the night and 3-2 ahead in the tie in northern France. A defensive mishap allowed Cash to bring Villa even with three minutes left though before Martinez, displaying his trademark dark arts, saved twice in the shoot-out as Unai Emery’s side won 4-3 in the shoot-out.
“He is very important for us. He has his personality and his personality in the dressing room is very important because he is a leader with his experiences. He has a really brilliant mentality,” said Emery. “And then on the pitch he has his personality and he played fantastic. He saved two penalty shots so of course I am very proud of him. I am very proud of all the players.”
Photo: Reuters
The Argentine goalkeeper saved spot-kicks from Nabil Bentaleb and Andre after being whistled loudly throughout the game by a crowd that had not forgotten his celebrations after the 2022 World Cup final win over France.
There was a confusing moment during the shoot-out when he was shown a second yellow card for more antics, including pressing his finger to his lips, but rules dictate that any bookings picked up in the match are reset before penalties commence.
It was a compelling finale to an evening that began with Lille quickly erasing Aston Villa’s advantage, making full use of the extra rest afforded to them against a side who beat Arsenal 2-0 on Sunday last week.
Yazici steered home 15 minutes in to haul Paulo Fonseca’s team level over the two legs before Lille captain Andre glanced in a corner midway through the second half.
However, with the Ligue 1 club heading toward their first major European semi-final, a defensive mix-up in the closing minutes proved costly.
Cash hammered the ball home to bring Villa even at 3-3 on aggregate after Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier spilled a looping cross following a collision with Bentaleb.
Chevalier redeemed himself with a sensational save from Douglas Luiz in extra time, reacting sharply to scoop the Brazilian’s header over the crossbar after parrying a powerful shot from Leon Bailey.
However, Martinez had the final say in the shoot-out after Chevalier saved Bailey’s attempt, with Villa moving on to face Olympiakos in the last four.
Last season’s runners-up Fiorentina sealed a return to the semi-finals with a 2-0 win over 10-man Viktoria Plzen after extra time.
Cadu was sent off in the second half for a foul on the edge of the Plzen box and Fiorentina made the extra man count when Nico Gonzalez struck in the 92nd minute.
Skipper Cristiano Biraghi added a second on 108 minutes as the Italians progressed 2-0 on aggregate.
Spanish striker Ferran Jutgla got both goals for Club Brugge against PAOK in a 2-0 win in Greece as the Belgians eased through 3-0 over the two legs.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
RSS