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A weakened Aston Villa missed out on a top four finish after being forced to settle for a disappointing 2-2 draw at already relegated Burnley.
Villa looked a shadow of the side that brushed aside Nottingham Forest on Thursday to book their place in the Europa League final and Zaydon Anthony was punished by capitalizing on an Emiliano Martinez mistake to give his side the lead.
The Argentine shot-stopper could only parry Leslie Ugochukwu’s long-range strike into the danger area before Anthony headed into the back of the net.
Gian Fleming then had a golden opportunity to double Burnley’s lead against a poor Villa but sprayed an effort wide of the target from point-blank range.
A disallowed goal for a tight offside call on Ollie Watkins would finally spark a response from Villa, with Ross Barkley heading in an early equaliser.
After his earlier effort was ruled out by VAR, Watkins finally had his say in the game, latching on to Martinez’s long ball to put Villa ahead, only for Fleming to sidefoot home an equalizer in response 160 seconds later.
The point at Turf Moor extended Villa’s winless run in the Premier League to three games in a crucial stretch of the season, with Bournemouth now just four points behind them in sixth place with two games of the season remaining.
Qualification for the Champions League season remains in their control thanks to their league position but with Liverpool and Manchester City coming in, a dark cloud of uncertainty and the prospect of lifting the Europa League to qualify now hangs over Unai Emery’s men.
More to follow…
