‘Aston Villa chiefs furious over Champions League music embarrassment’
Aston Villa’s “people upstairs” are thought to be very upset after the mistake that preceded their Champions League clash with PSG.
Unai Emery‘s side hosted the French champions at Villa Park on Tuesday night (15 April) in the second leg of their quarter final tie.
In the end, a valiant 3-2 win on the night for Aston Villa was not enough to see them progress, with Luis Enrique’s side reaching the semi finals thanks to a 5-4 win on aggregate.
Even so, there was plenty of be proud about for the hosts from that match, with Man United loanee Marcus Rashford producing some moments of magic in particular.
Immediately before kickoff however, there was one incident that everyone connected with Aston Villa would surely prefer to forget.
Champions League music blunder at Villa Park
As is tradition ahead of matches, after both sets of players had walked on to the pitch ahead of tunnel, the two teams lined up ready for the Champions League anthem to be played.
At that point though, an apparent mix-up behind the scenes at Aston Villa meant that the anthem for the Europa League was instead played prior to the sides undertaking their pre-match handshake.
It was an unmistakable error that has already generated plenty of attention, and Gabby Agbonlahor believes those at the head of operations at Villa Park will be angry about the incident.
As Agbonlahor joined the talkSPORT panel on Wednesday (16 April), he was introduced with a rendition of the Europa League anthem.
| Aston Villa last five games | Result |
| Brighton (A) | Won 3-0 |
| Nottingham Forest (H) | Won 2-1 |
| PSG (A) | Lost 3-2 |
| Southampton (A) | Won 3-0 |
| PSG (H) | Won 3-2 (lost 5-4 on aggregate) |
With Ally McCoist then asking him what had happened, the former England international responded by saying: “What I would say is, whoever made the mistake, I wouldn’t want to be them at 9 o’clock this morning when they’re in a meeting.”
After McCoist and Alan Brazil suggested the mistake wasn’t that bad and hadn’t affected the game, Agbonlahor replied: “It didn’t make any difference to the game but I just feel that like, your club’s biggest game in probably 42, 43 years since 1982 winning the European Cup.
“Probably the biggest viewing of a game you’ve played in, against PSG at home, and you play the wrong music, I’m sorry but the people upstairs will not be happy!”
Aston Villa chiefs will be frustrated over PSG error
Football Insider Verdict
For many, the mistake made in playing the wrong music will have been a hilarious moment to break the tension ahead of such a big match.
Those connected with Aston Villa though are unlikely to have seen it this way, as on such a big night for the club, an obvious error was made over something so simple.
As a result, it is not the best look for the club who have been attempting to look the part after making their long-awaited return to the Champions League this season.
On the pitch they did at least do that, with Emery’s side likely to feel extremely unlucky not to have taken PSG to extra time at the very least.
One of the big aims now for the remainder of the season, will be to ensure they are playing in that competition again in the 2025/26 campaign.
Given the financial windfall Aston Villa have earned from this Champions League run, there is plenty of incentive for them to try and achieve that again.