Aston Villa's Europa Conference League run was ended at the semi-final stage as they were outfought and outthought by Olympiacos in a 2-0 loss.
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- Villa beaten 2-0 by Olympiakos
- Suffer Conference League sf exit
- Emery's side lose 6-2 on aggregate
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Trailing 4-2 in the first-leg, Villa started with plenty of intent but were undone by a swift counter-attack that dangerman Ayoub El Kaabi swept home from close range in the 10th minute. The Villans had 74% possession and 15 shots to the hosts' nine but the Olympiacos striker put some extra gloss on the scoreline with a neat finish 12 minutes from time. Emery's tiring side huffed and puffed but fell to a convincing 6-2 aggregate defeat as Olympiacos deservedly advanced to face Fiorentina in the final.
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THE MVP
Ayoub El Kaabi: The Olympiacos striker has been in irresistible form for the Greek giants, scoring five goals across both legs. He backed up his hat-trick at Villa Park with a poacher's performance at the Karaiskakis Stadium. Villa could not keep him under wraps as he took his goal tally for the season to 32 in all competitions.
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THE BIG LOSER
Lucas Digne: Villa had a mountain to climb to get back into this game and they were not helped when experienced left-back Digne was nowhere to be seen when El Kaabi put Olympiacos ahead. Many of his team-mates raced back to defend but the ex-Everton man somewhat sauntered back to his box, leaving the striker unmarked.
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WHAT COMES NEXT?
While Villa's run in the competition has come to a close, Olympiacos will face Fiorentina in the final on May 29 in Athens. Emery's side return to Premier League action on Monday when they host Liverpool, who are a place and 11 points ahead of them in third.