Watkins punishes Liverpool as Villa seal Champions League place

Ollie Watkins scored twice as Aston Villa eased to a 4-2 Premier League victory over Liverpool on Friday to seal Champions League qualification for next season and leave their visitors looking over their shoulder at the chasing pack.

The win moves Villa into fourth place with 62 points from their 37 games, leapfrogging their opponents, who have 59 points from the same number of matches.

Liverpool remain vulnerable to being caught by both Bournemouth and Brighton & Hove Albion in the race for a Champions League place as they slipped to a 12th defeat of the season with a single point from the last nine available.

Morgan Rogers gave Villa a first half lead before Virgil van Dijk equalised for Liverpool early in the second period and then got another in added time.

But Watkins’ double and a brilliant late fourth from John McGinn sealed the win for Unai Emery’s side, who head into Wednesday’s Europa League final against Freiburg in buoyant mood.

“We had to get over line,” McGinn told Sky Sports. It allows us to be excited and enjoy Wednesday properly.

“He (Watkins) was obviously disappointed in March (being left out of the England squad) but if it gave him a kick up the backside, he’s certainly responded in the best way.

“We’re so fortunate to have him, what he’s done for this club the past few seasons has been incredible. Hopefully he can carry that into next week.”

Villa head to Istanbul to meet Freiburg with one of their major goals this season already achieved, and the chance to lift silverware to cap their campaign.

The hosts took the lead on 42 minutes against the run of play. Lucas Digne found Rogers in space on the left-hand side of the box and the forward curled it into the far corner.

Liverpool levelled on 52 minutes when Van Dijk headed home at the back post from Dominik Szoboszlai’s free-kick, before 17-year-old winger Rio Ngumoha struck the base of the post from the edge of the box.

But a slip from Szoboszlai presented Watkins with a second goal for the home side, and Emiliano Buendia struck the Liverpool post with a curling shot as Villa looked the more likely to score again.

And so it proved as Watkins netted his second via a rebound from close range.

McGinn curled in a beautiful shot to make it 4-1 on 89 minutes, before Van Dijk’s second headed goal brought some respectability to the scoreline. (Reuters)

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Alex Eala to compete as qualifier in Strasbourg Grand Prix

Filipina tennis standout Alex Eala is set to continue her clay-court campaign after being listed among the qualifiers for the upcoming Strasbourg Grand Prix, which opens its main draw next week.

The Women’s Tennis Association website included Eala in the qualifying field together with several established players, including France’s Elsa Jacquemot, Czech Republic veteran Barbora Krejcikova, and Poland’s Magda Linette.

Eala heads to Strasbourg following her stint in the Italian Open, where she reached the Round of 32 before absorbing a defeat to world No. 2 Elena Rybakina.

The 20-year-old Filipina also competed in doubles in Rome alongside American partner Hailey Baptiste, but the pair exited in the opening round against the tandem of Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova.

Despite the setback in Italy, Eala has continued to gain experience on the WTA Tour this season through appearances in several high-level tournaments.

During the clay-court swing, she advanced to the Round of 32 in the Italian Open and Stuttgart Open, while also seeing action in the Madrid Open.

Earlier in the year, Eala reached the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships and the Abu Dhabi Open, as well as the Round of 16 in both the Miami Open and Indian Wells. She also made the semifinals of the ASB Classic in Auckland to open her 2026 season. (AC)

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