Villa boss Emery hails 'fantastic' Rashford after Chelsea win

Marcus Rashford twice provided the assists for Marco Asensio's brace as the two winter signings' link-up handed Aston Villa a crucial 2-1 win over Chelsea earlier on Saturday. The Victory lifted the Villans into eighth place while the Blues remained in sixth, with their hopes to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 2022 suffering a huge blow.

Speaking on the impact of the two January window signings, Villa boss Unai Emery said: "This was the objective when we signed those players, trying to improve our squad with the quality and skill they have. Asensio can get the tempo we need. He can get assists and also score goals as he did today. I need that. Marcus played a fantastic 45 minutes. We now want him to be consistent."

The former Real Madrid forward scored on 57 minutes to cancel out Enzo Fernandez's early opener before grabbing a last-gasp winner for the hosts as his shot squirmed past Jorgensen's woeful attempted save. It was the latest goalkeeping calamity for Chelsea this season after Jorgensen replaced the even more error-prone Robert Sanchez.

Bemoaning Jorgensen's error, coach Enzo Maresca said: "The keeper position is very difficult. When you make a mistake is clear for everyone. Today Filip made a mistake but at this moment he is our keeper and we need to stick together. It was a tough one because we did not deserve to lose. Even after the 1-1, we had chances to score. "We had some great chances and in this league, you have to be clinical otherwise until the end anything can happen.

 

February 22, 2025