Aston Villa suffered at the hands of Olympiacos on Thursday night, losing 4-2 on a night that saw plenty of drama fall upon Villa Park.
The script that Unai Emery hadn’t written unfolded at Villa Park on Thursday evening, as Aston Villa lost 4-2 in the first leg of the Europa Conference League semi-final against Olympiacos.
From the off, the Greek side looked to have a game plan to suffocate the Villans, hard work that paid off as their direct play on the counter saw them score four goals in Birmingham.
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An Ayoub El Kaabi hattrick and a deflected effort from Santiago Hezze sealed Villa’s fate, seeing Ollie Watkins and Moussa Diaby’s goals lose their significance as Emery’s side must now overturn a two-goal deficit in Greece.
While it was a six-goal thriller at Villa Park, the goals weren’t the talking points from the game, as a number of controversial calls were made by referee Marco Guida.
Alan Nixon reacts to Aston Villa penalty shout against Olympiacos
In the first half, Villa Park erupted as Leon Bailey was seen tangled with Francisco Ortega in the box, leading to the Jamaican losing possession and falling to the ground.
Guida waved claims away at first before VAR reviewed the on-field decision, deciding not to overturn it, causing quite a stir both in the stands and on social media.
One figure to comment on the refused penalty claim was journalist Alan Nixon, who shared three direct tweets on the matter.
First, Nixon gave a four-word verdict saying, ‘Well that’s a penalty’.
A fan watching the game then responded by saying ‘stonewall’, seeing the journalist reply with, ‘How can you NOT review that? He’s hooked his leg round him. Farcical.’
There was some debate over the penalty not being awarded due to Ortega being seen playing the ball just beyond Bailey’s reach however, the contact that came after was undoubtedly a foul, an opinion shared by Nixon:
‘Defender got a touch and then blocked him by tripping him.’
Denied Aston Villa penalty will be a topic of conversation after Olympiacos defeat
VAR has induced debate almost every game this season, with tonight’s contest being no different as Bailey’s shouts were dismissed by the referee.
Many shared the opinion that the Jamaican should have seen his stumble result in a penalty kick, with pundit Stephen Warnock branding the appeal as ‘so obvious’ on BBC Sport’s coverage of the fixture.
If a penalty was to have been awarded, the game could have looked a lot different for Villa however, aside from the questionable call, the hosts will accept that their performance on the night was simply not good enough.
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