ASTON Villa threatened to pull off a stunning comeback against Paris St-Germain before going out of the Champions League on a dramatic night at Villa Park.
Villa were attempting to overturn a 3-1 deficit to reach the semi-final but their hopes looked in tatters when they were two goals down inside the first half-hour
Achraf Hakimi cashed in on Villa keeper Emiliano Martinez’s mistake to put PSG ahead, then Nuno Mendes doubled the French side’s lead to leave Villa needing to score at least four goals.
In a thunderous Villa Park atmosphere, Unai Emery’s team refused to yield and launched a magnificent response to put this hugely talented PSG side on the rack.
Youri Tielemans pulled one back after 34 minutes with a deflected shot before a second half of pure theatre unfolded in front a frenzied Villa Park.
Villa struck twice in two minutes to spark hopes of a remarkable revival, John McGinn scoring from 20 yards after 55 minutes before defender Ezri Konsa put them ahead on the night after fantastic work by Marcus Rashford.
And, as Villa’s belief grew, it took three crucial saves from PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to stop them drawing level in the tie.
He dived high to his left to magnificently claw away Rashford’s rising drive, then somehow turned out Tielemans’ header before saving at the feet of substitute Marco Asensio.
PSG managed to regain a measure of composure to hold on and will meet Arsenal or Real Madrid in the semi-final.
Aston Villa’s Champions League thrill ride continued until the very last-minute as they gave this superb Paris St. Germain side a huge scare before finally going out.
The odds were piled up against Villa after their 3-1 loss in Paris, and they were in an even deeper hole when PSG ruthlessly picked them off early on to add two goals to that advantage.
Villa deserve huge credit for refusing to buckle when all seemed lost, delivering a brilliant fightback that took them to within one goal of forcing extra time.
