Victory for Liverpool at Aston Villa will secure Champions League football – could they be aided by their opponents’ Europa League commitments?
The Reds’ final away game of the season is a trip to Villa Park on Friday night, as fourth takes on fifth in the Premier League.
It will be a tough assignment for Liverpool, but Unai Emery’s side face Freiburg in the Europa League final next Wednesday, in a huge night in the club’s history.
Ahead of the game, we spoke to journalist Sam Tighe (@stighefootball) to preview an important match, and discuss what has gone wrong with Harvey Elliott this season.
How would you rate Villa’s season out of 10, and why?
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, November 1, 2025: Liverpool's Mohamed Salah is challenged by Aston Villa's captain John McGinn during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Aston Villa FC at Anfield. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
I hope you didn’t think that was an easy question to begin with!
Aston Villa have always been streaky under Unai Emery, but this season has taken that to new levels. They’re either invincible or terrible — no in between.
This might surprise some on the outside, but it is widely accepted among the fanbase that this season has been a struggle.
Last summer was absolutely horrible, as a UEFA settlement not only prevented Villa from spending, but also created uncertainty over who might leave.
Emi Martínez was supposed to depart but didn’t. It all bled into the season and the goalless start even had some people predicting relegation.
But that gave way to a ludicrous winning streak, which only really came to a grinding halt when the club’s best player — Boubacar Kamara — was injured in the FA Cup against Tottenham.
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - Wednesday, February 19, 2025: Aston Villa's Youri Tielemans celebrates after scoring his side's first equalising goal during the FA Premier League match between Aston Villa FC and Liverpool FC at Villa Park. The game ended in a 2-2 draw. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
He’s been out ever since, and when Youri Tielemans and John McGinn went down around the same time, things snowballed again.
Ever since then, Villa have just been trying to stabilise. Catch a breath. Manage fitness.
This is a squad of perhaps 14 genuinely usable players and it has played 53 games and counting. They’re exhausted and they have to pick and choose their moments to unleash their energy.
They’re now hanging onto fifth (or better) in the Premier League by a thread, with clear focus on the Europa League final.
But to come back to the question: Villa are on the verge of achieving something special — but that’s not to say it’s been a particularly fun watch.
How do you grade that? Probably a five if they lose the final, but an eight if they win it.
Just how big would winning the Europa League feel?
NYON, SWITZERLAND - MARCH 15: The UEFA Europa League trophy on display prior to the UEFA Europa League 2023/24 Quarter-finals And Semi-finals Draw at the UEFA Headquarters, The House of the European Football, on March 15, 2024 in Nyon, Switzerland (Photo by Kristian Skeie - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
A friend of mine, who is travelling to Istanbul next week for the final, text me today to say he’s been listening to Three Lions by Baddiel & Skinner this week, as it contains a handful of eery parallels to Villa’s situation.
The tenuous link here is the lion on Villa’s badge, but the real one is the line “30 years of hurt.”
It’s been exactly 30 years since Villa last won a trophy — the League Cup in 1996 — and to say it’s been painful would be an understatement.
I was at Villa Park for the semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest and the atmosphere was unlike anything I have ever seen there.
Fans in seats 20 minutes before kick-off, singing non-stop, generating an atmosphere the players could not help but feed off.
At full-time, fans gushed about how it was the greatest night at VP they’d seen in decades — and how the atmosphere was even more special than when Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain visited last season.
The excitement for Istanbul is palpable. Winning a trophy would be everything.
Which three players have impressed most for Villa? Who has struggled?
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - Sunday, August 20, 2023: Aston Villa's Boubacar Kamara during the FA Premier League match between Aston Villa FC and Everton FC at Villa Park. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Kamara is the best player at the club and has been badly missed since January. He is almost always the best player on the pitch when he plays.
McGinn has risen in recent months to lead this team better than ever, and crucially, inject an intensity that seemingly no one else can.
Lastly, the team looks hopeless when Pau Torres doesn’t play. He conducts and builds possession from the back like few others can.
When Tyrone Mings steps into his place, the unfortunate reality is that everyone seems to get worse.
At the other end of the scale, most of the depth options just look so far off the level required.
Mings is starting to look really poor; Jadon Sancho has put in a handful of strong performances but based on a season’s evidence, has been nowhere near it; and Leon Bailey — recalled from loan in January because three midfielders got injured at once — has been Space Jammed.
What exactly has gone wrong with Harvey Elliott?
BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - Saturday, February 1, 2025: Liverpool's substitute Harvey Elliott on the bench before the FA Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Liverpool FC at Dean Court. Liverpool won 2-0. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Harvey Elliott is a victim of regrettable circumstances.
It is not fair what has happened to him this season and the following two statements ring true with most fans I speak to: 1) Supporters are embarrassed at the mess Villa has created for him, and 2) Harvey has handled himself unbelievably well, all things considered.
This deal was secured as part of a last-minute trolley dash at the end of the window, forced by Villa’s difficult summer of unknowns.
In the closing hours, the mantra “anything is better than nothing” clearly took over, resulting in loans for Sancho and Elliott. Put frankly, they were all that was left on the shelf at that stage.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Sunday, May 11, 2025: Liverpool's substitute Harvey Elliott on the bench before the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Arsenal FC at Anfield. The game ended in a 2-2 draw. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
The sporting director who secured the Elliott deal, Monchi, left the club a handful of weeks after the window.
He was supposed to working closely with Emery, but it seems like that wasn’t the case, as Emery took an immediate and seemingly unchangeable dislike to Elliott.
That clause has been a nightmare. I’ve felt so sorry for him, knowing that even when named on the bench, his chances of getting onto the pitch are about as good as mine.
Do you see a future for him at Villa?
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Monday, August 4, 2025: Liverpool's Harvey Elliott celebrates after scoring his side's fourth goal during a pre-season friendly match between Liverpool FC and Athletic Bilbao at Anfield. Liverpool won 4-1. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Not while Emery stands in the dugout, no.
How do you rate Liverpool’s season? Would you keep Arne Slot?
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, May 9, 2026: Liverpool's head coach Arne Slot during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Chelsea FC at Anfield. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Notwithstanding the obvious and severe issues affecting Liverpool’s season, I’ve been extremely underwhelmed.
Right from the word go, on opening night against Bournemouth, the Reds looked poorly set up and were fortunate to chain those early wins together.
The late goal concessions, the poor form of key players, the fact you could drive a bus through the midfield gaps – it all reflects very poorly on Arne Slot in my opinion.
I would have sacked him in November.
Looking ahead to Friday’s game, where will the key battles take place?
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, May 9, 2026: Liverpool's Alexis Mac Allister applauds the supporters after the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Chelsea FC at Anfield. The game ended 1-1. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
The first battle is mental. Villa have a European final five days after this game, so how will the players that are chosen balance that with the immediate task at hand?
The evidence from last week’s embarrassing defeat to Spurs suggests very poorly.
If the midfield are shirking tackles and the centre-backs aren’t sprinting, don’t be surprised.
Perhaps former Evertonian Ross Barkley, who cannot play in Europe, will unleash himself, but others will likely be quite cautious.
Otherwise, central midfield is big. Villa’s entire tactical strategy is based on building through the centre of the park, and multiple teams have done well to block that off in the last few months.
Can Liverpool manage it? I’d argue not based on what I’ve seen from Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch lately.
If Villa protect Torres and Lucas Digne’s fitness, instead playing Mings and Ian Maatsen, then you should enjoy playing down that side — Villa’s left, Liverpool’s right.
If it was fertile ground for Burnley, what might it be for a good side?
Finally, what’s your prediction?
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, May 9, 2026: Liverpool's captain Virgil van Dijk after the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Chelsea FC at Anfield. The game ended 1-1. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
An optimistic call is a 1-1 draw, given Villa may need something from this game.
Liverpool are just about dysfunctional enough to allow that to happen.