At dawn on Thursday (7), the EU staged an unusual event. The solid pillar of Aston Villa, Tyrone Mings, started a fierce battle in Bruges. He steered his horse in the box and tried to block the opposing keeper's shot with his hand. However, the referee decided to award a 12-yard penalty. Villa lost 0-1 with this "unexpected gift" and their winning streak in the UEFA Europa League this year was cut short.
Villa won the previous three rounds of the tournament. In this match, the visitors engaged in a fierce attacking battle with Bruges. In the 51st minute, Villa goalkeeper Damien Martinez easily kicked the opponent's lob out of the way, and Tyrone Minns rose high in the air in the process. He dropped to the penalty area and started the attack again. Just as he was about to strike the ball, the referee suddenly blew his whistle and awarded a 12-yard penalty kick for a foul. Winnagan took a precise shot and sent it into the empty net to seal Brugge's 1-0 win.
After the game, Villa leader Emery said, "What a strange mistake by Mings, the worst I've seen in my career and I've only ever encountered it once in my life, and that was today." Indeed, a similar scene played out in last season's Europa League. Arsenal stalwart Gabriele Magathis blocked a lob with his hand in a Bayern Munich game, but the referee dismissed it as a "minor error" that didn't benefit his team and didn't award a penalty because, as a matter of common sense, the referee wouldn't have blown for a 12-yard spot-kick.
