With the title race and relegation battle largely settled, the competition for European spots needs to bring excitement to the final stretch of this Premier League season. Aston Villa did exactly that, blowing the top-five race wide open with a decisive victory over Newcastle United, bringing them level with Nottingham Forest in the fight for the last European qualification place.
This 4-1 win was nearly as impressive as Tuesday night`s close game against PSG. Another of Europe`s most in-form teams found that Villa Park is a tough place to visit when Unai Emery can unleash so many talented attacking players. From the 33rd second, Newcastle was on the defensive, with Ollie Watkins` shot deflecting off Fabian Schar and into the net. The Swiss center back, perhaps fortunate to avoid a red card for pulling down Villa`s striker when he was chasing a long ball, made amends with a header at the far post that leveled the score before halftime.
They rarely looked like they would maintain the tie. When Eddie Howe returns from his recovery from pneumonia, one of his top priorities should be addressing why Newcastle, who had won their last three matches with a combined score of 12-1, seem to run out of energy towards the end of demanding game weeks. An unchanged starting eleven across five games in April partly explains this.
Meanwhile, Villa, without any significant injuries, had a wealth of talent to throw at Newcastle. Watkins played like a man determined to reclaim his starting position after it was taken by Marcus Rashford. He finished the game with a goal, hit the crossbar twice, and provided the assist for Ian Maatsen`s overlapping run to make it 2-1 just after the hour mark.
In control, Emery turned to fresh legs on the bench. His substitutions immediately proved effective. Jacob Ramsey sprinted down the left, delivering a low cross that was flicked on by Youri Tielemans and turned into the net by Dan Burn. Fellow substitute Amadou Onana completed the scoring in impressive style, driving a shot into the top corner from 20 yards out.
Now Villa appear to be the team timing their sprint perfectly. Five consecutive wins have placed them sixth for now, and victories against Nottingham Forest and now Newcastle are pulling the frontrunners back towards the chasing pack. Chelsea, in particular, should be very grateful to Emery.
Meanwhile, Manchester City might view their Tuesday game under the Villa Park lights with some apprehension. However, they are still managing to secure the points they need. Given the nature of their match on Saturday afternoon, one of the last teams to play away against a revitalized Everton at Goodison Park, the three points they secured late in the game were valuable.
Usually, when City builds late-season momentum, it`s as they push for bigger prizes than Champions League qualification. Pep Guardiola, however, insists that it would be a `big, big success` for his injury-hit squad to achieve Champions League qualification.
`Today was really, really important,` said Guardiola. `Of course, the motivation is different when you`re fighting for the title, but we accepted that many months ago. I tried to convince the players that Champions League qualification in this country is a huge achievement. We shouldn`t feel sorry for ourselves because we haven`t had a good season. We still have something really good for the future, to improve and reach the positions we want to be.
`If we think that Champions League qualification isn`t enough, we would be arrogant. We would be presumptuous. We would be something we shouldn`t be. Every season in this country since I arrived nine years ago, I`ve thought Champions League qualification is a big, big success.`
Whether they will achieve that remains to be seen. After the excitement of a comeback win against Crystal Palace last week, Pep Guardiola continued with the Kevin De Bruyne-led system that had worked well. The concern was relying on a 33-year-old whose declining fitness might suggest a parting of ways at the end of the season. This was evident on Merseyside as City struggled for 80 minutes to break down the Everton defense, with eight shots for 0.6 expected goals.
Nico O`Reilly eventually capitalized on a late error from Jordan Pickford before Mateo Kovacic added a second. The performance might not have been impressive, but now is not the time to worry too much about that when points are being earned.
Even more so because their rivals are not consistently winning. Following boos after qualifying for the Conference League semifinal on Thursday, Enzo Maresca needs his Chelsea team to rally at Fulham. Their advantage has shrunk to goal difference, and they will hope that a trip to Tottenham, the kind of opponent vulnerable to fast breaks, offers them a chance to end a two-game losing streak.
With just over a month of the season remaining, this looks like a race that will go down to the wire. Villa`s surge through the pack is going to put significant pressure on the other contenders.
Dominic Ashworth