Aston Villa Under-21s claimed a hard-fought win over Blackpool in the Vertu Trophy on Tuesday evening.
An academy side defeating a senior League One team — especially one led by former Villans boss Steve Bruce — is notable enough, but it’s the method of victory that truly caught the eye.
The two teams convened at Blackpool’s Bloomfield Road home and played long into the night to determine the winner of this round of 32 EFL Trophy tie…
Steve Bruce’s Blackpool fall to record-breaking penalty shootout defeat against Aston Villa academy side
Steve Bruce
Bruce presided over Villa's three-season stop in the Championship
With the two sides having netted one each when the referee sounded the full-time whistle, it was straight to a penalty shootout as custom dictates in the EFL Trophy knockout stages.
Somewhat less customary is requiring a combined 38 spot-kicks on the night to determine a winner, with Villa on the right side of the 18-17 scoreline.
Steve Bruce as the manager of Newcastle United in the Premier League
Bruce's last top-flight job was with Newcastle United — it wasn't all smiles then, either(Image credit: Owen Humphreys)
The seemingly never-ending event saw both goalkeepers step up and score, with most outfield players having to take two to find a winner.
Signs that there was little to separate the sides came when Albie Morgan failed to convert the Seasiders’ second attempt, and Villa’s Aidan Borland returned the favour by missing the very next penalty. Both men scored on their next try, so it was Jordan Gabriel’s botched attempt for Blackpool which delivered the long-awaited conclusion to the game.
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It broke the record for the most penalties ever taken in a shootout in the English professional game, a record only set earlier this season by Preston North End and Fulham in their 34-penalty thriller at Deepdale.
Having kicked off at 19:00 GMT, Blackpool’s official X account posted the final result almost two and a half hours later. Time for bed!
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, Man of the Match has to go to Jordan Gabriel for actually managing to separate these two sides with his missed penalty — they might still be there now if it wasn’t for him.
EFL Trophy meetings aren’t renowned for their excitement, so a national record attempt sure adds something, but our thoughts still go out to those who sat through the entirety.