Aston Villa cruised into the last eight of the UEFA Conference League after a 4-0 demolition on Ajax on Thursday evening.
Ollie Watkins opened the scoring for Unai Emery’s side before being forced off with a concerning knee injury just moments later.
A rampant second half, with goals from Leon Bailey, Jhon Duran, and Moussa Diaby, saw the Villans to a comprehensive victory at Villa Park.
The victory means Emery’s side have now done something no Aston Villa side has done for 25 years.
Aston Villa achieve something that hasn’t been done in 25 years
Villa have now reached their first European quarter-final since 1998. 25 years ago, the West Midlanders took on Atletico Madrid before crashing out of the UEFA Cup.
It’s an impressive feat, and it’s important Emery and his team capitalise on this golden opportunity. As we saw with West Ham United last season, silverware is a once-in-a-lifetime thing for supporters. In the grand scheme of things, only so many fans can see their team win a major trophy in person.
The Conference League is an excellent chance for Villa to finally get their hands on something significant that will be remembered for years.
The Villa boss has made no secret of his desire to show respect to the competition. “We wanted to win but our first objective is completely done: to be first in the group,” he said after the group stage.
“We want to enjoy the way in this competition because for us to be in Europe, it’s important to remember how we achieved it last year and how we are now trying to win a trophy. We want to enjoy it with our supporters and some supporters were here with us today. It’s important for them to be together and enjoy this way in Europe.”
The Spaniard is giving supporters reason to be cheerful at the moment, with more European nights under the lights in the offing for the Villa Park faithful.
