Aston Villa boosted their Champions League hopes with a hard-fought 1-0 win against Brighton at Villa Park.placeholder image
Aston Villa boosted their Champions League hopes with a hard-fought 1-0 win against Brighton at Villa Park. | Getty Images
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has shared his thoughts after a narrow defeat to high-flying Aston Villa
Unai Emery’s men earned all three points despite failing to register a single shot on target during the match with the Seagulls. The decisive moment in the contest came from a set-piece when a Tyrone Mings header was inadvertently turned in by Brighton star Jack Hinshelwood in the 86th minute in a tense game under the lights.
The win boosts Aston Villa’s hope of securing a Champions League finish after both Manchester United and Chelsea fell to draws against West Ham United and Leeds United respectively.
The Lions will be keeping a close eye on how things pan out between league leaders Arsenal and Brentford, with just six points separating Emery’s men and his former club in this season’s title race.
Hurzeler shares frustration after Aston Villa defeat
In his post match interview, Hurzeler told reporters: “I’m definitely frustrated, but we showed a good reaction to Sunday and I learned a lot about the players in the last days in terms of their character and how they stick together. You could see that in the performance.
“I'm sorry for our fans who were absolutely amazing and who supported us for 90 minutes. We deserve to win but we have to keep going.”
Brighton are winless in six league matches and have been on a downward trajectory in recent weeks, slipping to 14th in the Premier League table and just seven points away from the drop zone.
Hurzeler felt his team deserved to win last night and claimed the goal was massively against the run of play.
“We conceded the set-piece goal out of nowhere. I think we controlled the game in the second half but small margins make the difference in Premier League games. We have to keep analysing it and control the controllables. We will go again and we are all convinced that we get the results.
“We have to keep pushing. The only way to do that is by being ourselves on the training pitch and using an extra opportunity in the FA Cup on Saturday against Liverpool to make it better."
Former Aston Villa midfielder makes Premier League history
Aston Villa’s victory over Brighton marked another special moment in the incredible career of former fan favourite James Milner.
The Leeds-born midfielder, who made his top-flight debut for the Whites way back in November 2002, made 126 appearances at Villa Park between 2008 and 2010, helping the club to two consecutive top six places under the guidance of Martin O’Neill.
He’s since gone on to win three league titles across spells with Manchester City and Liverpool, and is now a key leader in the Brighton dressing room.
Overall, he has now made a record-breaking 635 Premier League appearances across 24 years, equalling a record set by former Aston Villa captain and teammate Gareth Barry.
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