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ASTON VILLA ENJOYED a perfect send off ahead of the Europa League final as a 4-2 win over Liverpool booked their place in next season’s Champions League and left the Reds still sweating over their qualification.
Ollie Watkins’ double, which will surely secure his place in England’s World Cup squad, and classy goals from Morgan Rogers and John McGinn guaranteed Unai Emery’s men will finish in the top five of the Premier League with a game to spare.
They can now head to Istanbul for Wednesday’s European final against Freiburg knowing their domestic ambitions have been achieved, allowing them to put their full focus on winning a first continental trophy in 44 years.
It is another fine achievement for Villa, whose progress under Emery shows no signs of stopping and they will play in the premier European competition for the second time in three years.
Whether Liverpool will also be there is undecided as defeat leaves them looking over their shoulder, with Bournemouth and Brentford still able to overtake them.
Virgil van Dijk scored with two headers, but this was another directionless performance from the Reds as the pressure grew on Arne Slot, who presided over an alarming 12th defeat of the season.
Written by Press Association and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.
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