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News
French media name the Aston Villa player who was ‘exemplary’ in Tuesday night’s Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain
Aston Villa gave a great account of themselves in the Champions League this season, pushing Paris Saint-Germain close in a thrilling quarter-final tie.
Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes scored in the opening half-hour to put PSG 5-1 up on aggregate.
However, Youri Tielemans struck back a few minutes after Mendes’ goal to give Aston Villa some hope.
Then, quickfire efforts from John McGinn and Ezri Konsa just before the hour mark put the Villans within a goal of levelling the tie.
Villa pushed hard for the goal that would’ve made it 5-5 on aggregate to take the Champions League tie to extra time, but sadly they just fell short.
Despite the disappointment of being eliminated from the competition, there was plenty of praise for some of Villa’s players, including from the French press.
Aston Villa captain John McGinn deemed ‘exemplary’ for PSG heroics
The French media was especially impressed by John McGinn, who gave a great account of himself on the night.
rated McGinn highly, making him their man of the match – ahead of Gianluigi Donnarumma – with a 7.5 out of 10 rating.
“The Aston Villa captain was exemplary on Tuesday,” they wrote. “Generous in his efforts, the winger provided the assist for Tielemans’ goal.
“Always present in the fight, the Scot revived his team after the break with a magnificent strike, slightly deflected by Pacho, which found Donnarumma’s top corner and equalized.”
Meanwhile, gave McGinn a 7 out of 10 for his efforts on the night.
They wrote: “For over an hour, the Aston Villa captain was Vitinha’s watchdog, making his life a living hell through constant harassment.
“With the ball, he was very inspired when his team managed to get their foot on it, like on this perfect shift to Youri Tielemans to reduce the score.
“He even created the equaliser for himself with a superb strike after a solo run where he was not challenged until 20 metres out.”
How John McGinn fared against PSG and what he said post-match
McGinn never stopped running for his team, teed Tielemans up for the opener, and his marauding run and goal helped put Villa level on the night.
He did so well on the night that some Villa fans slated Unai Emery after he decided to take McGinn off, while the Marcus Rashford substitution didn’t go down well either.
McGinn took to X the morning after the game to praise his Villa teammates along with the claret-and-blue fans.
“So proud of my teammates and everyone involved in not giving up and believing when not many gave us any hope,” he wrote.
“Villa Park was electric and it’s our job to make sure these special nights can continue. Let’s not stop here.”
Villa are next in action on Saturday evening when they host Newcastle United in the Premier League.
The Villans are also in FA Cup semi-final action later this month, taking on Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on 26 April.