Aston Villa manager Unai Emery gave a frosty explanation of why he left the sideline early after his side conceded a stoppage-time equalizer against Manchester United on Sunday.
Late goals from Joshua Zirkzee and Patrick Dorgu salvaged a dramatic 4-4 draw for the hosts at Old Trafford and left Villa ruing a two-goal lead they let slip.
Emery insisted the United equalizer was not unfair, given the time added on, and said his exit was not down to emotion. He pointed out that United scored in the 96th minute, that six minutes had been added and that the match was finishing. When a reporter pushed him on the point, he said it was the 96th minute and 30 seconds when Villa kicked off, which was after he had already left. He then sarcastically said his English is poor and asked whether that was clear, before wishing the reporter well and moving on.
Emery called it a very difficult, tough match in which Villa competed well. He said the team struggled at times in the first half after scoring its two goals, and that in the second half it lacked good balance to score a third and try to win the game. United scored twice in the last six minutes, he said, adding that they had also done it in Rome last Tuesday and that it is difficult to win at Old Trafford. His overall analysis was that Villa had lost an opportunity to win the match.
Villa were 2-0 up inside four minutes through Alysson and Nicolas Jackson, but Bruno Fernandes and Youri Tielemans ensured parity at half-time. Villa made it 4-2 through John McGinn and Leon Goretzka before United staged their late comeback.
United were left in the relegation zone, while Villa are 10th heading into the international break.
Source: ESPN
