Aston Villa crashed out of the Europa Conference League at the semi-final stage as they lost 2-0 on Thursday night against Olympiacos.
Having suffered a shock 4-2 lead in the home tie a week earlier, Villa were expected to have a real go at a historic comeback.
In truth, though, Unai Emery‘s side were poor as they lost 2-0 on the night, meaning it will instead be Olympiacos who take on Fiorentina in the Athens final after a 6-2 aggregate win.
Former Celtic manager Neil Lennon was on commentary duty for BBC Radio 5 Live and was far from impressed by what he saw from The Villans.
Neil Lennon unimpressed by ‘awful’ Aston Villa v Olympiacos
Lennon, whose most recent managerial role was at Cypriot side Omonia Nikosia, was left frustrated by the tame Villa performance.
Towards the end of the game, Villa looked defeated as they could not unlock a disciplined Olympiacos defence and a number of players grew visibly angered by their performance as a team.
Speaking when all hope was lost towards the end of the match, Lennon explained what he was witnessing from the Villa players, saying: “It’s awful. In the last 15-20 minutes we’ve seen Villa start to bicker, John McGinn is having words with Ollie Watkins, Douglas Luiz is having a go at Pau Torres.
“A lot of arguing going on. It is just not happening for Villa.”
Aston Villa must brush off disappointment ready to end season strong
Whilst the two-legged affair was bitterly disappointing for Villa, they must now shake off the disappointment of missing out on the opportunity to take the club to a first European final since 1982.
Emery’s side are still in pole position to secure a top four spot and a place in the Champions League would still represent a historic campaign despite the lack of Europa Conference League final.
Villa need to win one of their last two Premier League games to guarantee Champions League football at Villa Park next season, but will also qualify if Tottenham Hotspur lose any of their three remaining matches.
Competing on two fronts so late in the season has certainly taken its toll on the squad, with injuries mounting up and the players that remain looking very fatigued in recent games.
Emery will have to galvanise his players for one final push to ensure they can reflect on a hugely positive season come the end of May.
