Key events
46 min: McGinn chases after a long ball down the middle. Marquinhos stands his ground. The defender catches McGinn in the face with an accidental arm. McGinn goes down. He’s not happy. He claims to have been deliberately elbowed. The referee’s having none of it, but McGinn has been on a rolling boil ever since that tangle with Hakimi. Tony Hughes, of half-time postbag fame, could be onto something.
PSG get the second half started. No changes.
Half-time postbag. “Many years ago Jonathan Wilson made the point that in the post-sweeper era, the national side with the best fullbacks generally won the the World Cup. I know that this was a point about the international game, but no club has a better pair of fullbacks than Nuno Mendes and Achraf Hakimi, which bodes well for PSG” – Kári Tulinius
“Not exactly Nostradamus-level, but I reckon the second half has at least a red card in it somewhere” – Tony Hughes
“Even though it’s still a tall task, I was thrilled to see Villa get on back. Then they showed Prince William celebrating. Come on PSG, put in another five!” – Rob Coughlin
HALF TIME: Aston Villa 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain (agg 2-5)
PSG’s flying full-backs look to have done for Aston Villa’s hopes of reaching the semis. Youri Tielemans has restored at least a smidgen of hope.
45 min: Dembele goes racing clear down the left. One pass. This is too simple. He enters the box but flays a wild shot over the bar. Then the flag goes up for offside. Had he scored, I think VAR would have got involved, Konsa playing him on.
44 min: Hakimi creams a long free kick down the middle. Dembele is free! Fortunately for Villa, Konsa battles back and gets in the road, Dembele slips, and the flag finally goes up for offside.
42 min: McGinn thinks he’s going into a 50-50 with Kvaratskhelia. In reality it’s more like a 20-80. The Villa captain is way late, clatters his man, and goes into the book. A high possibility he’s not yet calmed down from the tangle with Hakimi.
41 min: Tielemans pops a pass down the inside-right channel for Torres, who from the corner of the six-yard box opts to cross rather than shoot. Wrong decision.
40 min: Vitinha, Dembele and Nuno Mendes nearly open Villa up again down the left. Then Fabián Ruiz one-twos with Kvaratskhelia in the middle but the resulting shot is weak and straight at Martinez. PSG seemingly not that concerned by the Villa goal.
38 min: Turns out Tielemans has been credited with the Villa goal. Everyone involved will be happy with that decision.
36 min: McGinn and Hakimi battle for a ball bouncing down the inside-left channel. The former leans into the latter, and the pair fall into the penalty box. McGinn wants a penalty but he’s not getting one. He holds Hakimi down, and nearly gets a boot in the face for his trouble. Had that connected, the referee would have had a decision to make. But we play on.
GOAL! Aston Villa 1-2 PSG (Pacho og 34); agg 2-5
Villa swarm PSG and attack again. McGinn lifts a pass down the inside-left channel. Tielemans opens his body and aims a curler towards the top-right corner. It deflects off Pacho and into the top-left past a flat-footed Donnarumma. A glimmer of hope!
33 min: Kamara breaks up a PSG pass-fest with an extended leg and sends Rashford and Tielemans away on a counter. The former sets up the latter, who enters the PSG box down the inside-left channel before going over. He wants a penalty, claiming to have been shoved in the back by Pacho, but he’s not getting one. But it doesn’t matter, because …
31 min: Vitinha one-twos with Dembele to break into space down the middle of the park. He switches play to Barcola on the left. Barcola nearly hipshakes his way into the area, but there’s one defender too many to beat. PSG are completely, totally, utterly on top.
29 min: Villa are being ruthlessly dispatched here. There’s no shame in it. This PSG team are magnificent, and the way they’re playing, will take some stopping in this competition. They look like champions in waiting.
GOAL! Aston Villa 0-2 PSG (Nuno Mendes 27); agg 1-5
Another PSG counter. Dembele is sent scampering down the right. He passes infield for Nuno Mendes, who takes a touch, opens his body, and curls a vicious low shot off the base of the left-hand post and in. What a finish. This is over.
26 min: Dembele probes down the right but can’t get past both Digne and Torres. Kvaratskhelia meanwhile has been quiet. Perhaps too quiet?
24 min: Rogers has looked the liveliest of the Villa attackers, and he advances again down the right before gliding infield and curling a low shot inches wide of the left-hand post. Donnarumma probably had it covered, but it would have been a close-run thing. Lovely effort.
23 min: Nuno Mendes nearly bursts clear into the Villa box down the left. Kamara sticks out a leg to put a stop to his gallop. It was a perfectly timed challenge. It had to be, or the ref would be pointing to the spot. Fine defending.
21 min: PSG respond by stroking the ball around at the back, taking all of the sting out of the game.
19 min: The ball drops to Rashford down the inside-left channel. His shot is blocked but at the expense of a corner, which Rashford takes himself. It’s easily cleared. But the ball is looped back into the mixer, then headed backwards strangely by Vitinha, dropping to Torres who has a whack from a tight angle on the left. Donnarumma stands tall and parries. Better from Villa.
17 min: Digne and McGinn try to get something going down the left, but Hakimi won’t budge. Not much in the way of a Villa response yet.
15 min: That’s muted the Villa fans, who have had their hopes seriously dented in double-quick time. The 2,000-strong PSG contingent are making themselves heard, though, with plenty of help from a very energetic drummer. The midlands are the heartland of heavy metal, after all.
13 min: Villa were on the attack just before the goal, only to be sprung on the counter. Morgan had won good possession in the middle of the park, and his team-mates advanced. He fed Rashford, who took a loose touch. Marquinhos pounced, and PSG sprung on the counter, Nuno Mendes pinging a long pass down the left to send Barcola on his way. Villa with a mountain to climb now.
GOAL! Aston Villa 0-1 PSG (Hakimi 11); agg 1-4
Barcola advances down the left. He crosses low, hoping to find Dembele in the middle. Martinez gets down to block but can’t keep hold of the ball. He tees up Hakimi, who from the penalty spot sweeps the loose ball into the top-left corner.
9 min: Rogers, Tielemans and Rashford combine elegantly down the right touchline, the latter nearly making space for a shot. Marquinhos is on point to put an end to Villa’s scheme. Speaking of scheming, here’s David Howell on that Uefa anthem switcheroo: “Accident? Or lucky charm considering Unai Emery’s record in matches preceded by that particular anthem?”
7 min: Konsa and Torres dally under a long ball down the PSG left. Dembele nips in and advances towards the box, sending a low cross in towards Barcola. It’s blocked and cleared, but for a nanosecond there, it looked like Villa were going to be architects of their own downfall.
5 min: Villa are first to everything at the moment. PSG yet to retain possession for any meaningful stretch of time. The home fans approve. The away end are giving it plenty as well, mind you.
3 min: From the second corner, Rashford dribbles in dangerously from the right but the PSG box is full of defenders and one of them whacks clear. A lively start by the hosts.
2 min: Rashford whips it viciously towards the near post. Tielemans flicks it on, the ball flashing through the six-yard box. João Neves eyebrows it out for a corner on the other side.
1 min: McGinn loops a pass down the left for Rashford to chase. Hakimi shepherds the ball back to Donnarumma, who blooters clear. From the resulting throw, McGinn wins the first corner of the evening.
Villa kick off. They’re kicking towards the Holte End in this first half. It’s tipping down in Birmingham.
The teams are out! Villa in their storied claret, PSG in blue. The PA blasts out the Champions League anthem the Europa League music?! Oopsie. One hell of an atmosphere nonetheless. Ah, here’s the Champions League tune at the second time of asking. Better late than never. All the hits. We’ll be off in a minute.
There are four Aston Villa players who would miss the first leg of the semi-final should they pick up a yellow card. Marcus Rashford, Lucas Digne, Boubacar Kamara and Axel Disasi need to be on their best behaviour.
There is only one PSG player walking the disciplinary tightrope. Fabián Ruiz their only man on a yellow.
Emery and his opposite number Luis Enrique have met in the knockout stage of the Champions League before. Here’s how one of the great comebacks/capitulations unfolded. PSG as an institution, and Marquinhos, the only survivor from their team that fateful night, will always have their demons. Then again so will Emery, who watched things fall apart in spectacular fashion from the Paris dugout. Probably best for everyone involved tonight if we quietly change the subject.
Unai Emery talks to Amazon Prime. “Good evening … we are motivated … excited … we have momentum in the season … try to get every drop of energy transmitted from the supporters to the team … now is the moment to focus our game-plan …we competed fantastic in Paris … we can compete fantastic again but do something more … we have to play with the ball and without the ball … play high, play low … set pieces … dominate with the ball … win duels … this is the highest level we have faced this year … I am looking forward to see how the players respond.”
Aston Villa make one change to their starting XI from the first leg. Amadou Onana comes in for Jacob Ramsey, who drops to the bench.
PSG make two changes to their starting line-up in the wake of their 3-1 win last Wednesday. Marquinhos returns from suspension and replaces Lucas Beraldo in defence, while Bradley Barcola comes in for last week’s hero Désiré Doué. Beraldo and Doué are on the bench.
The teams
Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Kamara, Onana, Rogers, Tielemans, McGinn, Rashford.
Subs: Olsen, Proctor, Disasi, Mings, Barkley, Watkins, Asensio, Maatsen, Bogarde, Bailey, Ramsey.
Paris Saint-Germain: Donnarumma, Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Nuno Mendes, Neves, Vitinha, Fabian, Barcola, Dembele, Kvaratskhelia.
Subs: Tenas, Safonov, Kimpembe, Goncalo Ramos, Lee, Hernandez, Mayulu, Zaire Emery, Lucas Beraldo, Mbaye, Doue.
Referee: Jose Maria Sanchez (Spain).
Preamble
Six days ago this happened …
… so now the 1982 champions need a big performance if they’re to set up a semi-final showdown with either Arsenal or Real Madrid. It’s not beyond the realms – Villa have won seven of the 12 European ties in which they’ve been beaten in the first leg away from home – but PSG are 13 from 19 in Europe after winning the first leg at home, so both teams can take heart from history. Kick-off is at 8pm BST. It’s on!
