Aston Villa beats Tottenham and increases the hope of Champions League

Birmingham, England (AP) -Aaston Villa beat an under-strength Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 and moved into Premier League Top Four on Friday. Villa started in sixth place that day, one of the six teams struggling for the four remaining Champions League places with the league winner Liverpool. The victory lifted Unai Emery’s men to 66 points, two points behind second place in Arsenal, equal to Newcastle and one above Manchester City. All three teams have a game in hand, just like Nottingham Forest, which was seventh with 62 points. Chelsea, who played Manchester United on Friday, started the night with 63 points and was also underway. At a tense night at Villa Park, the home team had the best of the game, but was forced to wait until the 59th minute to get the opener. Ollie Watkins returned John McGinn’s corner over the goal and an unmarked Ezri Conca turned in the ball. Boubacar Kamara doubled the lead with a low drive from the edge of the penalty area. The result expanded Villa’s unbeaten home game to 21 games in all competitions, his best since 1977, leaving Spurs in 17th place in the 20-team league. More important to the London team was the lack of new injuries. Coach Ange Postecoglou rested several regular outstanding players before the final of the Europe Conference League against Manchester United. Both Friday matches were brought forward by 48 hours to allow Spurs and United more time to prepare for next week’s final in Bilbao. ___