Michele Di Gregorio of Juventus is fouled by Diego Carlos of Aston Villa on the build up to a goal scored by Morgan Rogers which was subsequently disallowed for the foul during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD5 match between Aston Villa FC and Juventus at Villa Park on November 27, 2024 in Birmingham, England
Michele Di Gregorio’s spill was judged to have been the result of a foul by Diego Carlos
Aston Villa have now gone seven games without a win in all competitions and here was another excruciating moment for Unai Emery.
Villa claimed a point against Juventus and remain on course to reach the Champions League knockout stages, but there will be huge disappointment over the final incident of the match.
What happened?
Four minutes into added time Villa launch a “Hail Mary” into the Juventus penalty area.
Youri Tielemans’ long-distance free-kick is lofted into the box as Villa search for the crucial breakthrough.
Juventus goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio appears certain to catch the ball, despite coming under pressure from Villa defender Diego Carlos.
However, Di Gregorio drops the ball, which then squirts over to Morgan Rogers, who is presented with the simple task of finishing from close range.
A very controversial finish at Villa Park 😲
Morgan Rogers' late goal is ruled out for a foul on Juventus goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio and the match ends 0-0 ❌
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/MyYL5Vdy3r
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 27, 2024
Cue bedlam at Villa Park, with Rogers wheeling away in celebration after putting away what he believes is a priceless winner.
Yet after a long delay referee Jesus Gil Manzano indicates that Di Gregorio was fouled by Carlos and the goal is disallowed, with a VAR check reinforcing his decision.
Juventus’ travelling fans celebrated but there were loud boos reverberating around Villa Park from the home supporters, who believed they had been treated to another dramatic last-minute winner in Europe this season.
It did appear a very soft foul, if a foul at all, and provided further evidence that goalkeepers are a protected species.
Villa will finish November without a win and this is proving a frustrating time for Emery and his players.
How did Villa react?
“I think it’s soft,” said Villa striker Ollie Watkins. “Maybe in the Premier League that’s a goal, but I feel like in Europe the goalkeepers are protected a lot with the referees. It’s one of them, I thought we had scored but to be fair I think it had a 0-0 game written all over it, so it would have been lucky had we took that there.
Villa players gathered around the referee to protest the decision
Villa players gathered around the referee to protest the decision
“I’ve got to be careful what I say about the referees but the refereeing is a little bit different. During this competition they don’t let things go as much. We’re used to that now, but it’s one of those things, sometimes the decisions go with you and sometimes against you and it’s out of our control really.”
What about the pundits?
Peter Crouch: “Back in my day, it would never have been a foul. The crowd here hasn’t been happy with the referee’s performance at all.
“It’s been an improved performance from Aston Villa, but they have lacked that cutting edge tonight.”
Michael Dawson: “The goalkeeper has dropped it, it went straight through his hands. It is so soft. It’s not a foul for me.”
Lucy Ward: “It’s definitely an important point for Aston Villa and Unai Emery. But they could’ve nicked the win there. I don’t think it was a foul, but this referee has been all over the place in this game.”
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