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Football

16th May 2024

Sir Alex Ferguson’s comments after Aston Villa’s opening day defeat resurface

Callum Boyle

Never doubt Sir Alex

It turns out that Sir Alex Ferguson was right all along about Aston Villa.

Unai Emery’s side booked their place in the Champions League this week after Spurs’ defeat against Manchester City the day before their draw against Liverpool meant Ange Postecoglou’s side could no longer catch the Villains

It’s the first time Villa have qualified for the Champions League since the 1982-1983 season.

Their opening day hammering to the hands of Newcastle United seems a lifetime away and in amongst their great form, Sir Alex’s comments about the West Midlands outfit have resurfaced.

While many were quick to write off the Villains, Ferguson tipped them to do as well as they are doing now.

After the game, he told NBC Sports: “To be honest with you, I watched Aston Villa and I can’t believe the scoreline. Honestly Aston Villa played fantastic football and just lost to bad goals.

“Newcastle are going to be very difficult to beat, in their own ground in particular, and their manager has done a great job there. It’s a surprising game, football. You can play teams off the pitch and not score – that’s what Aston Villa did.”

It seems that more are taking notice of Emery’s side too, with Pep Guardiola admitting that Villa are in the title race.

“Yes, definitely. For the way they are playing, their physicality, their speed, the bench, Unai Emery, their mid-block, set-pieces. Definitely,” he said.

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