Football: Mostovoi master of Vigo's revenge

Caption competition
Caption competition
View past winners of our Sports caption competition
News in pictures
News in pictures
On Facebook
Sport blogs

Hertha Berlin and the Skibbe saga – a depressing tale

Perhaps, in a few decades time, some German writer will transform Michael Skibbe's excruciatingly br...

Top 14: Day of reckoning looms for Racing Metro

By the middle of Wednesday afternoon we should have the first indication of what lies ahead for Raci...

iBet: Barcelona are struggling away from home

My betting instinct in any first leg of a two-legged tie is to go low on goals, and that applies eve...

Aston Villa 1 Celta Vigo 3 Celta win 3-2 on aggregate

THE TEAM lying fourth in Spain inflicted acute embarrassment on the Premiership leaders last night. Celta Vigo, a cosmopolitan outfit from the Galician coast, made light of Aston Villa's first-leg advantage and reputation for formidable defence to reach the third round of the Uefa Cup for the first time.

Villa, who progressed to the quarter-finals last season before falling to Atletico Madrid, have now gone out of two cups in seven days. When they lost 4-1 at Chelsea in the Worthington Cup, it was with a weakened team. This time, despite a numerical advantage in the final half hour, there were no mitigating circumstances.

John Gregory had promised that Celta would see "the real Villa" after the somewhat unfamiliar line-up he had been forced to field in Vigo. Since they had returned with a 1-0 victory over a side still unbeaten in eight Primera Liga fixtures, that appeared to represent a daunting prospect for the Spanish team.

Celta, however, clearly felt that they also had something to prove. The onus was on them to attack, and, having survived a third-minute scare when Stan Collymore's headed "goal" was correctly ruled offside, they swept forward with considerable flair and more freedom than Gregory would have liked.

Alexander Mostovoi, a Russian international who now has Portuguese nationality, proved lethal as he drifted largely unchecked between midfield and the front. Before the game was 70 seconds old he had broken through to shoot across Michael Oakes's goal. His next foray into Villa territory led to Celta levelling the aggregate score. Villa appealed for an offside flag as Mostovoi threaded a pass through to Juan Sanchez. But Gary Charles was playing him onside, and Sanchez maintained his concentration on the angle of the six-yard area to fire into the far corner of the net.

Within three minutes, Villa restored their overall lead. As Ian Taylor shaped to cross from the dead-ball line, Mazinho made an injudicious sliding challenge. While he avoided taking the man, the Brazilian handled the ball. The referee did not accept his plea that the sodden surface had been to blame, allowing Collymore to score emphatically from the spot.

A third goal in nine minutes put Celta back in front. Ugo Ehiogu was adjudged to have fouled Sanchez, giving Mostovoi the opportunity to demonstrate his placement skills from the free-kick. He seized it impressively, drilling the ball low into the minute gap between Oakes and the post from 20 yards.

If the home crowd hoped for a fresh start after the break, during which Mark Draper replaced Charles, they were swiftly disabused. Only three minutes had elapsed when Celta further exposed the frailties of what is theoretically England's strongest defence. Indiscipline was again Villa's undoing, Lee Hendrie bundling over Claude Makelele as he surged past him.

Mostovoi, almost inevitably, took command. His cunningly flighted free- kick from the Spanish left gave Sanchez - hardly the tallest of forwards - a free header. Oakes swooped to his left to parry, only for the beefy Bulgarian, Luboflav Penev, to beat Ehiogu to the loose ball.

Villa were, of course, in a worse pickle in the previous round against Stromsgodset, who led them 2-0 at Villa Park with eight minutes left before succumbing 3-2. Alan Thompson's drive looked goalbound in the 55th minute but the ball struck the post and bounced into Richard Dutruel's hands.

Like the Norwegian part-timers, who had their captain sent off, Celta were reduced to 10 men after 57 minutes. Rafael Berges, cautioned in the first half, cut down Taylor from behind. The ensuing red card served as the green light for Villa to pile forward in numbers.

Taylor hooked wide from one corner, while at the next, a towering header by Ehiogu was hacked off the line by Valeri Karpin. Gregory even sent on Darius Vassell, the 18-year-old whose two stoppage-time goals had completed the fightback against Stromsgodset, but Celta were in no mood to allow the magic to work a second time.

Aston Villa (3-5-2): Oakes; Ehiogu, Southgate, Barry (Vassell, 65); Charles (Draper, h-t), Taylor, Hendrie, Thompson (Grayson, 83), Wright; Collymore, Joachim. Substitutes not used: Byfield, Jaszczun, Rachel (gk).

Celta Vigo (4-1-3-2): Dutruel; Michel, Caceres, Djorovic, Berges; Mazinho; Karpin (Tomas, 70), Mostovoi, Makelele; Penev (Cadete, 77), Sanchez (Eggen, 58). Substitutes not used: Oscar Vales, Gudelj, Jose Pinto (gk).

Referee: A Ancion (Belgium).

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus

Day In a Page

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

After years of complaints and workers' suicides in China the technology giant faces up to the human cost of its gadgets
Peter Moore: 'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'

Peter Moore interview

'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'
Sellafield faces nuclear option as overspending threatens plant's future

Sellafield faces nuclear option

Overspending threatens plant's future
Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Tehran rejects Netanyahu's 'lies' after diplomats in India and Georgia targeted
Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time

Tommy Cassidy interview

Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time
James Lawton: Patience may not be a virtue this time, Roman – Andre Villas-Boas looks all at sea

James Lawton: AVB looks all at sea

Abramovich's visits to training reinforce the idea of a coach feeling pressure from above and below
The 10 Best sledges

The 10 Best sledges

Not all of them require snow...
Procrastination: Not now – I'm busy

Procrastination: Not now – I'm busy

Confronting the real reasons for puttting things off can help us beat it
Fun in the sunset years

Fun in the sunset years

A new movie follows retirees moving to India for low-cost care and a culture of respect for the elderly. For many Britons, it's already a reality
Picture preview: Lucian Freud drawings

Lucian Freud drawings

Picture preview
Silent revolution at the Baftas as the French take top awards

Silent revolution at the Baftas

The Artist wins in seven categories, with Meryl Streep the other big success story
Whitney Houston: The diva who had – and lost – it all

The diva who had – and lost – it all

Nick Hasted charts the highs and lows of Whitney Houston's life
How Picasso won over (some of) the British

How Picasso won over (some of) the British

Winston Churchill and Evelyn Waugh hated his work, but Picasso provided inspiration for a whole generation of UK artists
Topshop: A Decade Of Design

Topshop: A Decade Of Design

When London Fashion Week starts on Friday, Topshop will celebrate 10 years backing its brightest young stars
John Prescott: 'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

At 73, John Prescott isn't mellowing. In fact he's taking a shot at becoming a police commissioner