Yahoo News Skipper issues tongue-in-cheek Aston Villa warning over 'nuts' Jhon Duran
Jhon Duran scored twice in the final 10 minutes to earn Aston Villa a thrilling 3-3 draw against Liverpool - and was then described as “a bit nuts at times” by his captain.
Villa looked dead and buried as Emiliano Martinez’s astonishing gaffe handed the Reds a second-minute goal, which was cancelled out by Youri Tielemans, before strikes from Cody Gakpo and Jarell Quansah put them 3-1 up at Villa Park.
But Duran climbed off the bench to score twice in four minutes and put Villa on the brink of qualification for the Champions League for the first time.
Praising Villa’s 20-year-old hero, Villa captain John McGinn told Sky Sports: “This place got us going when we got the second goal. It's a brilliant effort. Big Jhon is a bit nuts at times. He's a nightmare to play against, but he's got moments of quality.
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“Okay, the second goal [a deflected effort past Liverpool keeper Alison Becker] was not about quality, but the first one was a top finish. We will need to try to keep his feet on the ground the next couple of days.”
The draw was not enough to seal a top-four finish and Champions League football for Villa, but a Manchester City victory over Tottenham on Tuesday will do the trick. McGinn added: “We'll have our Man City tops on tomorrow.”
"Some of us have never been close to Champions League football in our lives, so the goal for us is massive. People keep writing us off but we are here. We have flown under the radar quite nicely and we are so close to fourth place now."
Tielemans added: “We created chances but we didn't score. We got the draw and fought right until the end and that's the most important thing. We're in that fourth position and we want to keep it."
The draw means Villa will be guaranteed a top-four spot if Tottenham fail to beat City on Tuesday night. If Spurs win, it will go down to the final day when Villa travel to in-form Crystal Palace while the London club visit already-relegated Sheffield United.
