Match ends, Aston Villa 2, Brighton and Hove Albion 1.
Aston VillaAston Villa2BrightonBrighton & Hove Albion1
Aston Villa beat Brighton at a raucous Villa Park to secure a return to European football after a 13-year absence.
Villa needed to win to finish seventh in the Premier League and earn a spot in the play-offs for the third-tier Europa Conference League.
They made a dream start as, after Leon Bailey had hit the crossbar, they took the lead in the eighth minute when the club's Player of the Year Douglas Luiz slid the ball home from Jacob Ramsey's pullback.
Ramsey got another assist 18 minutes later when he collected a through ball and, just as away goalkeeper Jason Steele slid at his feet, knocked a sideways pass to Ollie Watkins for the England striker to score his 15th league goal of the season.
Brighton thought they had scored when Deniz Undav volleyed in, but Julio Enciso was adjudged by the video assistant referee to have been offside in the build-up.
In the 38th minute, a VAR decision did go Undav's way when he scored following a quickly taken free-kick by Pascal Gross. The assistant referee flagged for offside but was overruled by officials at Stockley Park.
Villa won the European Cup in 1982 and last played in European competition in 2010, losing 4-3 on aggregate to Austrian side Rapid Vienna in the Europa League play-offs.
Despite a nervous second half against Brighton, they held on to the victory they needed to spark celebrations in the stands.
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Villa's remarkable turnaround
There was a thunderous atmosphere at Villa Park - with boss Unai Emery saying this was the day the club had been dreaming off for the past two months - and the occasion did not disappoint.
The final whistle prompted players to hug each other while Emery and his coaching staff did likewise amid incredible noise from the home fans.
What made this more special for Villa's supporters was the knowledge this was something they could not have contemplated a few months ago.
It has been a truly remarkable season.
In October they were only out of the relegation zone on goals scored, with two wins from 11 games when Steven Gerrard was sacked an hour after a 3-0 loss to Fulham.
Ex-Sevilla and Arsenal boss Emery arrived from Villarreal and has transformed Villa's season, guiding the side to 15 wins from 25 matches and taking them back into Europe.
For Brighton, this has been the best league season in their 122-year history. With sixth place already assured, the Seagulls have qualified for the Europa League - their first European campaign.
Roberto de Zerbi's side had chances to wreck Villa's day but Undav had a shot saved by Emiliano Martinez, whose Argentina World Cup winning team-mate Alexis Mac Allister fired just wide from the edge of the penalty area.
De Zerbi faces a summer during which Mac Allister and a number of the club's other highly rated players - such as Moises Caicedo, Kaoru Mitoma and teenagers Enciso, Facundo Buonanotte and Evan Ferguson - will have admirers.
Whoever returns after the off-season, Brighton will have European football to look forward - and so too will Villa.
Player of the match
FergusonEvan Ferguson
with an average of 7.84
Aston Villa
Avg
- Squad number41Player nameJ RamseyAverage rating
7.49
- Squad number6Player nameDouglas LuizAverage rating
7.11
- Squad number11Player nameWatkinsAverage rating
7.06
- Squad number10Player nameBuendíaAverage rating
6.94
- Squad number44Player nameKamaraAverage rating
6.75
- Squad number7Player nameMcGinnAverage rating
6.74
- Squad number4Player nameKonsaAverage rating
6.69
- Squad number31Player nameBaileyAverage rating
6.67
- Squad number1Player nameE MartínezAverage rating
6.64
- Squad number2Player nameCashAverage rating
6.58
- Squad number5Player nameMingsAverage rating
6.55
- Squad number27Player nameDigneAverage rating
6.50
Brighton & Hove Albion
Avg
- Squad number28Player nameFergusonAverage rating
7.84
- Squad number10Player nameMac AllisterAverage rating
7.03
- Squad number21Player nameUndavAverage rating
6.89
- Squad number20Player nameEncisoAverage rating
6.86
- Squad number22Player nameMitomaAverage rating
6.79
- Squad number25Player nameCaicedoAverage rating
6.72
- Squad number13Player nameGroßAverage rating
6.68
- Squad number6Player nameColwillAverage rating
6.60
- Squad number23Player nameSteeleAverage rating
6.54
- Squad number30Player nameEstupiñánAverage rating
6.50
- Squad number40Player nameBuonanotteAverage rating
6.40
- Squad number4Player nameWebsterAverage rating
6.31
- Squad number34Player nameVeltmanAverage rating
6.25
- Squad number26Player nameAyariAverage rating
6.17
- Squad number29Player namevan HeckeAverage rating
6.00
- Squad number71Player nameHinshelwoodAverage rating
5.84
Line-ups
Aston Villa
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1E Martínez
- 2CashBooked at 22mins
- 4Konsa
- 5MingsBooked at 37mins
- 27Digne
- 44Kamara
- 6Douglas Luiz
- 31BaileySubstituted forBuendíaat 69'minutes
- 7McGinnBooked at 67mins
- 41J RamseyBooked at 24mins
- 11Watkins
Substitutes
- 3Diego Carlos
- 9Traoré
- 10Buendía
- 16Chambers
- 18Young
- 25Olsen
- 32Dendoncker
- 56Revan
- 66Patterson
Brighton
Formation 4-4-2
- 23Steele
- 34VeltmanSubstituted forEstupiñánat 45'minutes
- 4WebsterSubstituted forvan Heckeat 65'minutes
- 6Colwill
- 13GroßBooked at 88mins
- 40BuonanotteBooked at 63mins
- 26AyariSubstituted forCaicedoat 45'minutesBooked at 73mins
- 10Mac Allister
- 20EncisoSubstituted forMitomaat 65'minutes
- 21UndavBooked at 12minsSubstituted forHinshelwoodat 89'minutes
- 28Ferguson
Substitutes
- 5Dunk
- 18Welbeck
- 22Mitoma
- 25Caicedo
- 27Gilmour
- 29van Hecke
- 30Estupiñán
- 38McGill
- 71Hinshelwood
- Referee:
- David Coote
- Attendance:
- 42,212
Match Stats
Home TeamAston VillaAway TeamBrighton
- Possession
- Home40%
- Away60%
- Shots
- Home12
- Away8
- Shots on Target
- Home5
- Away4
- Corners
- Home4
- Away3
- Fouls
- Home15
- Away16
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Aston Villa 2, Brighton and Hove Albion 1.
Post update
Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Alexis Mac Allister.
Post update
Attempt saved. Jacob Ramsey (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Emiliano Buendía with a through ball.
Post update
Offside, Brighton and Hove Albion. Jan Paul van Hecke tries a through ball, but Kaoru Mitoma is caught offside.
Substitution
Substitution, Brighton and Hove Albion. Jack Hinshelwood replaces Deniz Undav.
Post update
Attempt missed. Lucas Digne (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right from a direct free kick.
Booking
Pascal Groß (Brighton and Hove Albion) is shown the yellow card.
Post update
Foul by Pervis Estupiñán (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Post update
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Post update
Offside, Brighton and Hove Albion. Pascal Groß tries a through ball, but Evan Ferguson is caught offside.
Post update
Alexis Mac Allister (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Foul by Boubacar Kamara (Aston Villa).
Post update
Attempt missed. Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is too high from a direct free kick.
Post update
Foul by Evan Ferguson (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Post update
Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Post update
Attempt blocked. Emiliano Buendía (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Post update
Foul by Pascal Groß (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Post update
Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Post update
Foul by Jan Paul van Hecke (Brighton and Hove Albion).
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Comments
Join the conversation
Well done Villa and Emery 👍
We all may knock the Conference League but try telling a West Ham fan it’s not worth being in…
I can now look forward to a very interesting summer in the transfer market
Congratulations to Unai and every single Villan. That's such a brilliant way to finish the season.
The smile on my face is reminiscent of that back in '81. No way would I ever have imagined that we'd finish 7th and in a European place after the debacle that was the start of the season.
Congrats also to the Board for being decisive after that Fulham game & for appointing Unai.
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