Where Unai Emery pointed speaks volumes as top eight route mapped out and Villa transfer conundrum awaits
Aston Villa failed to take the opportunity to put themselves in the driving seat for a top eight finish in the Champions League league phase after losing 1-0 to Monaco at the Stade Louis II on Tuesday night.
Villa fell behind in the eighth minute when Wilfried Singo headed in a rebound after Emi Martinez made a strong save. Ollie Watkins had the best chance for Villa in the first half after he was played in by Emi Buendia, but the striker's effort was saved by Radoslaw Majecki just before the interval.
Watkins set Morgan Rogers up early in the second period, but his effort flew wide of the far post after striking inside the box. It turned out to be a frustrating night for Unai Emery's team, who will likely kick-off against Celtic next week outside of the top eight after this evening's games are played.
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Here are the talking points from Villa's defeat in Monaco...
Emery's mood summed up Villa frustration
Emery cut a frustrated figure on the touchline as Villa failed to break Monaco down and carry out his game plan. Once he arrived for his post-match press conference, his anger was clear.
Often calm and collected, Emery couldn't his emotion when speaking to the media as he went on to slam Villa's "horrible" set-pieces and claimed that some of his players didn't follow his plan.
Emery spent half of the conference answering the first question: 'what went wrong?' Clearly, lots. He responded that he would need two days to explain everything which irked him in the game.
Then, after being requested to provide an example of how some of his players didn't carry out his demands, Emery pointed to his temple, as if he was alluding to a mentality issue. Asked to elaborate, the Villa boss tapped his temple once more. The reporter continued: "Do you think the mentality is not strong enough?" Emery replied: "We want it. And we need it."
As he refused to go into too much detail, only Emery will know which players didn't follow the plan as he suggested, but he did also mention: "Morgan was sick. I think Kamara, Tielemans, Konsa, Cash, Martinez and Tyrone played doing everything we were planning."
Villa's top eight hopes mapped out
This was far from Villa's worst performance under Emery, but certainly not their best. What caused extra frustration for Emery was that they wasted a big opportunity to all but avoid a two-legged knockout play-off. Four points from games against Monaco and Celtic would have likely been enough for a top eight finish, so a win on Tuesday night would have been a big boost.
Now, there's a slim chance will make the top eight on matchweek eight because they're hoping for results to go their way. Currently in eighth, there are a few sides who could catch Villa even if Celtic are defeated next week.
Brest, in ninth place and on the same points as Villa (13), play Shakhtar Dontesk (A) and Real Madrid (H) in their last two. Bayern, on 12 points, are away against Feyenoord and then home to Slovan. Milan, also on 12 points, play Girona (H) and then Zagreb (A).
Sporting and Feyenoord could also get to 16 points, but it's unlikely with the Dutch side playing Bayern and Lille, while Sporting are at RB Leipzig this evening and then at home to Bologna, who beat Borussia Dortmund last night. The Portuguese side's goal difference is also three worse than Villa's currently.
Ahead of Villa, Inter - also on 13 points - play Sparta Praha (A) and Monaco (H), while Arsenal face Zagreb (H) and Girona (A). Leverkusen, also on 13 points, play Sparta Praha at home. If those sides finish on 16 points, then Villa could still finish above them with a better goal difference.
Atalanta, on 14 points, play second-placed Barcelona away from home next week. So if Villa beat Celtic, there's a decent chance they can leapfrog the Italian outfit, but finishing ahead of only one side currently above them in the rankings may not be enough. That's because Bayern and Milan both have two favourable fixtures.
It sounds obvious, but a win over Celtic by a few goals would give Villa them the best chance of finishing in the top eight. It's certainly plausible, but Monaco remains a big missed chance.
What's the solution if Watkins and Duran can't play together?
Emery admitted to making a mistake by playing Duran up front with Watkins from the 56th minute. He claimed it weakened the midfield in the final 20 minutes as Monaco looked more likely to score than Villa in transition.
Duran and Watkins have only started two games together as a pair, which came against West Ham and Crystal Palace on the road last term. Of course, the trip to Selhurst Park came on the final day of the campaign once Champions League qualification was already in the bag.
Emery has been reluctant to start pair, and for good reason as well because the structure of the team falls apart. They've scored 22 goals combined in all competitions, but each of them have impressive tallies because they were usually the focal point in that point in a game.
Neither striker will be happy sitting on the bench, but one of them will have to until the end of the season if Emery can't find a way of starting them both. If that proves to be the case then come the summer, Villa will have to make a big decision.
Every top club in Europe would like Duran, but only a few can afford him, while Watkins has proven to be a vital cog in the Emery machine from a tactical perspective - he's not only a goalscorer. Having strong competition for places is a must in any successful team, but can Villa keep both of them happy if they know playing together is not an effective option?
Mings: Fine margins cost Villa in Monaco
Tyrone Mings claimed fine margins cost Villa in Monaco, with Emery's side controlling over 60 per cent of possession and also registering five shots on target.
After full-time, he told TNT Sports: "No excuses. I gave a poor ball away leading to the corner, didn't defend the corner very well. We couldn't get back in the game and couldn't take the chances we had. That is the fine margins of football.
"We were just not good enough. We will certainly take the positives that came from the game but we have to be better. We have to try to stay balanced and be the same if we won when we lose. We need a consistent mood and attitude.
"It wasn't a good night, there's not a person here who feels good about that - the fans have travelled a long way. We will go again. In the big moments we came out on the wrong side of them."
