Aston Villa were defeated 2-0 by Liverpool on Saturday night, but it was not without its controversial moments.
Going into the game on the back of three successive defeats, Villa were aiming to end their poor run of form at Anfield.
Unai Emery had set Villa the challenge of matching Liverpool and show that they can compete with the best.
On the field, Villa did this for large periods of the game but ultimately, didn’t do enough to get the result.
However, this could have been completely different if two controversial moments would have gone in Villa’s favour.
Unai Emery believes Aston Villa should have received a penalty in Liverpool defeat
After having a penalty claim turned down in the first half after Ollie Watkins’ shirt was pulled, Villa were already feeling aggrieved.
Therefore, when Pau Torres went down in the box only for VAR to wave away their penalty claims, the visitors were furious.
After the match, when asked about the decision, Emery was convinced that Villa should have had a penalty, particularly for the challenge on Torres.
He said: “With VAR, the action of Ollie and Pau, it was clear a penalty. He had his shirt pulled, Pau Torres. In Europe penalty, in England, they use VAR…I don’t know where but it was clear for me. I accepted it but when I watch it with VAR…penalty. An important moment.”
Read more: Aston Villa player ratings vs Liverpool.
Aston Villa simply didn’t do enough against Liverpool
Unfortunately, the reality for Villa is that they simply didn’t do enough to prevent a defeat at Anfield.
Many of the squad let Emery down with their performance with Jaden Philogene in particular having a poor cameo off the bench against Liverpool.
It was no doubt an improved display from the Tottenham game, but it was still off their usual standards set by the Spaniard that have seen famous wins over the years.
Now, after their fourth successive defeat, Villa need to quickly bounce back after the international break to ensure this poor form doesn’t become a habit.
