Aston Villa’s European dream is finally over and not even the serial trophy winner Unai Emery could rescue their hopes of silverware on this occasion.
Villa were the last Premier League team standing but ambitions of reaching a first showpiece final since 1982 were shattered in the port city of Piraeus.
Their European excursions have proved an uplifting experience, yet this was their 54th game of the season and it always felt like a hurdle too significant for Emery’s injury-ravaged squad to overcome.
Lethargic and devoid of spark, the damage from last week’s first leg was ultimately irreparable. Though inspirational goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez returned from injury, Villa were underwhelming and never looked capable of securing a magical comeback.
Olympiacos, meanwhile, have reached their first ever European final and will face Fiorentina in Athens later this month.
Despite the disappointment of Villa’s exit at such a late stage in the competition, there is so much room for optimism. Last season Villa were in danger of dropping into the Championship under Steven Gerrard. Now they are in contention for a place in next season’s Champions League under Emery, their brilliant Basque coach. Victory over Liverpool at Villa Park on Monday night will be enough to secure a place in the competition.
Emery said: “Unfortunately we lost the opportunity in the first leg, we have to accept this and how we can improve.
“This is a difficult day but we have to react quickly. It is a process and the first objective was to compete in Europe.
“These are great experiences for us and it is difficult to win in these competitions, whether it is the Champions League or Conference League.
“We have two games left to get the fourth position, which is amazing motivation.”
Emery will also reflect on an alarming injury list that has decimated his squad.
With Tyrone Mings, Emiliano Buendia, Youri Tielemans, Boubacar Kamara, Jacob Ramsey, Morgan Rogers, Nicolo Zaniolo and Alex Moreno all absent, Villa’s bench was almost an advertisement for the club’s academy.
Clement Lenglet, the loan signing from Barcelona, was the only outfield player among the substitutes over the age of 21.
While other managers use injuries as a reason for underachievement, Emery operates with a “no excuses” culture. So many key players missing proved insurmountable, however.
John McGinn, the captain, said: “You want everyone available, you want your best players there.
“When you are in the trenches, someone you can turn to in order to change the game or do something different.
“Of course we wanted to do better this year and get to a European final but we will do everything we can to get ourselves back into this position and get to a final.”
It has been quite a journey. Villa’s European adventure began way back on August 23 in the city of Edinburgh with a qualifier against Hibernian.
This second leg always felt like an uphill task after the 4-2 defeat at Villa Park last week, which also included a missed penalty late in the match from Douglas Luiz.
Villa’s social media account adopted the hashtag #Believe ahead of the rematch, but it always appeared a forlorn task.
Not even Martinez could salvage this tie. The Argentina World Cup winner was inspired in Villa’s win over Lille in the quarter-final second leg, saving two penalties in the shoot-out, and it was inevitable that the pantomime villain would return here after a recent thigh injury.
Yet the issues were in the final third for Villa, who never looked capable of scoring.
While Villa were targeting a repeat of their 1982 European Cup win, this was also a huge occasion for Olympiacos.
Fans were congregating outside the Karaiskakis Stadium three hours before kick-off and club officials described it as the biggest game in their long history.
The first goal was always going to be crucial and came after 11 minutes. Villa had appeared in control but the poor defending from the first leg was in evidence again. Ayoub El Kaabi was the Olympiacos danger man after his hat-trick in the first leg and was completely unmarked to convert from close range after Quini’s low cross caught out Pau Torres.
