MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Aston Villa manager Unai Emery confronted referee Thomas Bramall after the final whistle in the Premier League’s final round Sunday, unhappy at a call by the match official that potentially cost the team a place in the Champions League.
A win over Manchester United at Old Trafford would have qualified Villa for Europe’s elite competition and Morgan Rogers thought he had given the visitors a 1-0 lead in the 73rd minute when he dispossessed goalkeeper Altay Bayindir and slotted the ball into an empty net.
However, the referee blew for a foul by Rogers on Bayindir, feeling the goalkeeper had possession of the ball in his hands before the midfielder kicked it away.