Aston Villa's title hopes have been dealt a severe blow by Brentford following a VAR drama that has left fans reeling. The visitors' victory came at a high cost, however, with Tammy Abraham's goal being disallowed in the 75th minute after a lengthy VAR review.
According to reports, the decision was made after Leon Bailey had lost possession near his own end and the ball appeared to have drifted out of play. However, the video assistant referee Paul Tierney ruled that the ball was still within Brentford's half when it went out of play, thus awarding a throw-in to the visitors.
The decision sparked outrage among Villa fans, who felt that the replay of the incident had set a worrying precedent for VAR reviews in Premier League games. Manager Unai Emery acknowledged that while he understood the VAR system was demanding, he believed that reviewing incidents four minutes after they occurred would set an undesirable standard.
Despite their frustration at the outcome, Brentford's head coach Keith Andrews praised his team's defensive display in the second half, saying it was a "masterclass". The visitors' victory lifted them within four points of fifth-placed Chelsea and moved them eight months into their tenure under manager Keith Andrews to get one over on Emery.
Aston Villa, meanwhile, remain winless since their last league defeat at home, with this loss marking their first successive home game without a result in two years. Despite the disappointment, Emery remains hopeful that his side can mount a late surge for the title.
In other news, Brentford's victory came after an impressive goal from Dango Ouattara in stoppage time and a gritty defensive display by Michael Kayode. Kristoffer Ajer came close to scoring but couldn't quite find the back of the net.
For Villa, Aaron Hickey saw his first Premier League appearance for the club come to an end when he was guilty of a miss from Bailey's chance.
According to reports, the decision was made after Leon Bailey had lost possession near his own end and the ball appeared to have drifted out of play. However, the video assistant referee Paul Tierney ruled that the ball was still within Brentford's half when it went out of play, thus awarding a throw-in to the visitors.
The decision sparked outrage among Villa fans, who felt that the replay of the incident had set a worrying precedent for VAR reviews in Premier League games. Manager Unai Emery acknowledged that while he understood the VAR system was demanding, he believed that reviewing incidents four minutes after they occurred would set an undesirable standard.
Despite their frustration at the outcome, Brentford's head coach Keith Andrews praised his team's defensive display in the second half, saying it was a "masterclass". The visitors' victory lifted them within four points of fifth-placed Chelsea and moved them eight months into their tenure under manager Keith Andrews to get one over on Emery.
Aston Villa, meanwhile, remain winless since their last league defeat at home, with this loss marking their first successive home game without a result in two years. Despite the disappointment, Emery remains hopeful that his side can mount a late surge for the title.
In other news, Brentford's victory came after an impressive goal from Dango Ouattara in stoppage time and a gritty defensive display by Michael Kayode. Kristoffer Ajer came close to scoring but couldn't quite find the back of the net.
For Villa, Aaron Hickey saw his first Premier League appearance for the club come to an end when he was guilty of a miss from Bailey's chance.
just watched that Brentford vs Aston Villa match and I'm still shaking my head 
. VAR drama at its finest... like, what even is the point of having VAR if they're gonna keep messing with the timeline? 
Four minutes after the incident, come on! It's not like they're trying to be hard or anything, just making it super frustrating for Villa fans who were already hyped up 
. And can we talk about how weird it is when teams win due to VAR decisions but then immediately start trash talking their opponents? 
Anyway, Brentford's definitely on a roll, but Aston Villa's chances of winning the title are looking grim 
I'm just saying, can't believe that VAR decision 
. Brentford's Dango Ouattara scored his 10th PL goal this season 
, while Aston Villa's Aaron Hickey had his first PL miss from open play 
️.
Brentford's title hopes: currently within 4 points of Chelsea for 5th place 
. The stats show they're in a great position right now... will this momentum carry them to the end of the season? 
i feel so bad for emery and villa fans, they're like winless at home since like forever 
but brentford's defense was on point tho! dango ouattara's goal was INSANE 
ajer had some huge chances too, maybe he should've scored lol 
.
. But seriously, Tammy Abraham's goal getting disallowed like that is just cruel 
. It's like they're playing with an extra player on the pitch or something 
.
. But hey, Emery is still hopeful and that's good, right? 
... you never know what's gonna happen next 
. Can we just get some consistency already? 
! The VAR drama in this game is absolutely mental! I mean, I get it, they've got to review those calls, but 4 minutes after the incident? That's just insane! 
Charts show that teams with more VAR reviews are more likely to lose games (
! Meanwhile, Brentford's Dango Ouattara scored an incredible goal in stoppage time. Did you see the stats? 
anyway brentford got the win and all but i gotta say tammy abraham is seriously talented 
i was talking to my friend who's friends son plays for brentford and he told me they've been working on that particular goal all week 
i also don't get why var can't just be more consistent like it's always saying one thing then another 
keith andrews is the man 
emery is right though, 4 minutes after the incident is way too long to review something like that