Arsenal’s Europa hopes dented, Villa out of relegation zone
BIRMINGHAM: Dean Smith urged Aston Villa to finish the job after they climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone as Trezeguet clinched a priceless 1-0 win against Arsenal on Tuesday.
Smith’s side have their survival fate in their own hands after the Egypt winger’s firsthalf strike at Villa Park.
Watford’s 4-0 thrashing against Manchester City earlier on Tuesday had opened the door for Villa to escape the bottom three. And Villa seized their chance with a first home Premier League win over Arsenal in 18 attempts dating back to 1998.
Villa are now fourth bottom and have moved ahead of thirdbottom Watford on goal difference, with Smith’s men on -26 compared to the Hornets’ -27. They head to West Ham for their final game of the season on Sunday while Watford visit Arsenal. Gunners cannot finish higher than eighth and must win the FA Cup final against Chelsea to qualify for next season’s Europa League.
GUARDIOLA SEEKS MORE CONSISTENCY
MANCHESTER: Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said the individual achievements of his players must be viewed in relation to the team’s success and consistency after Raheem Sterling’s brace sealed a 4-0 win over Watford on Tuesday.
“Of course, we’ve been much better than the other 18 teams. The distance from second to first is big, the distance between second and third is big too, but it’s not enough. We all still need to know we’re far away from Liverpool. This was the first time we’ve managed to win four in a row in the league. Two seasons ago, we managed 18, last season we managed 14,” Guardiola said.
IBRA DOUBLE TAKES MILAN TO VICTORY MILAN:ZLATAN
Ibrahimovic scored twice in the first half to give AC Milan a 2-1 win at 10-man Sassuolo on Tuesday as they remained unbeaten since the restart of the season and guaranteed a place in the Europa League.
After a match which saw goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma make his 200th appearance for the club, Milan confirmed that coach Stefano Pioli’s contract would be renewed until 2022.
Milan, unbeaten in 10 games in all competitions, moved up to fifth with 59 points, enough to guarantee them at least a place in the Europa qualifying rounds.