BirminghamLive brings you the talking points from Aston Villa's
Morgan Rogers runs past Jacob Ramsey with the ball
Morgan Rogers runs past Jacob Ramsey with the ball(Image: Getty Images)
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It’s now 69 years and counting since Aston Villa last won the FA Cup.
Unai Emery’s side were dumped out in the fourth round on Saturday night as Newcastle United won 3–1 in B6.
The tie, however, hinged on a moment of madness from Marco Bizot, who was sent off for taking Jacob Murphy down at the end of the first half.
Tammy Abraham had opened the scoring for Villa, but Sandro Tonali scored twice against 10-man Villa before Nick Woltemade added a third.
Here are the talking points…
Bizot’s costly mistake
Where else to start than Bizot’s error? It was a rush of blood, comparable to Emi Martinez’s mistake at Old Trafford on the final day of last season.
Breaking the moment down, it should have been avoided before Bizot even thought he had a decision to make.
Deep in the first half, with Villa already a goal to the good, they should not have committed the numbers they did in attack.
Leaving themselves vulnerable at the back, it took one poorly executed pass from Leon Bailey to hand Newcastle a golden chance to equalise before the interval.
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Murphy, however, appeared to be heading wide rather than directly at goal, making Bizot’s decision to rush out even more baffling.
Without hesitation, referee Chris Kavanagh pulled out the red card after Bizot cut Murphy down with a cynical tackle.
"I accept it like some things can happen,” Emery admitted post-match. “Nothing to complain. We made these mistakes but it was for all of us. Not just for the goalkeeper or Leon.
“We must get experience to try and correct it and to get better for the next decision that we will face."
The positive: Tammy’s scoring for Villa, again
The one big positive from Saturday night was Abraham opening his account for the club for a second time.
Despite tucking one away against Brentford at the start of the month, it was ruled out as the ball was adjudged to have gone out of play 19 seconds earlier.
In a stroke of luck this time around, it appeared that Abraham had strayed into an offside position when he gathered Douglas Luiz’s disguised ball over the top before finishing past Aaron Ramsdale.
“It means everything, as a striker you always want to score goals,” he said on TNT Sports afterwards. “I got unlucky in my first game with the goal ruled out. I'm always delighted to score. It's good to be back."
"It’s a difficult result to take, I'm proud of my team, we dug deep and gave them a tough game,” he continued. “We know they have qualities to create chances. When the first goal went in, the heads go down. Being a man down is always difficult.
"I'm proud of the boys and we must keep going. We have to keep believing in ourselves, we are still in the Europa League and in a good position in the Premier League."
Jacob Ramsey jokingly kissed the Newcastle United badge
Jacob Ramsey jokingly kissed the Newcastle United badge (Image: TNT Sports)
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Ramsey’s return to Villa Park
Jacob Ramsey impressed on his return to Villa Park, although it was odd seeing him in opposition colours.
Deployed in a more conservative role than he was used to under Emery, Ramsey partnered Sandro Tonali well in the heart of Newcastle’s midfield.
Ramsey is starting to find his feet at Newcastle following his £39 million switch from Villa last summer.
He scored his first goal for the club last Tuesday, netting the winner against Tottenham in north London.
But he would have been looking forward to finally returning to Villa Park and caught the eye both during and before the game.
TNT Sports cameras picked up a moment in the warm-ups where Ramsey poked fun at Villa’s Morgan Rogers - a close friend - by holding the Newcastle crest on his jumper and kissing it.
Rogers, in response, gave a thumbs-down to his former teammate, disapproving of the joke.
Some Villa fans, however, may have taken it more personally, and Ramsey appeared to have wound a few up too. As he came off in the 80th minute, a few words were shouted at him by supporters in the lower North Stand.
Where it leaves Villa’s season
Being dumped out of the cup doesn’t change Villa’s objective this season - it just makes it harder.
Emery’s side must qualify for the Champions League and win a trophy.
The Europa League remains their best chance to end a 30-year trophy drought.
Of course, winning the competition would also secure a return to the Champions League, but while nobody is banking on that, Villa’s league form remains crucial.
Sitting in third place with 12 matches left to play, Villa need six more wins to all but guarantee a return to UEFA’s elite club competition.
Claret & Blue verdict