Emery on Palace loss

Aston Villa exited the Carabao Cup at the fourth round stage on Wednesday night as Crystal Palace progressed at Villa Park.

Manager Unai Emery rotated his squad but still fielded an experienced lineup full of quality against the Eagles.

And he saw his side fight back from a goal down in the first half via Jhon Durán’s strike before Daichi Kamada won it for the visitors in the second half.

“We wanted to win,” Emery reflected.

“We started the match a little bit lower than we needed, but we reacted after their goal and we created chances.

“We came back the result, drawing. It was not enough. We started the second half very well and we were close to scoring the second goal.

“We were with confidence and feeling good on the field. They scored the second goal and after it was more difficult.”

Emery was happy to see Tyrone Mings return to the starting XI for the first time since August last year, while players like Emi Buendía and Boubacar Kamara also gained valuable game time.

He said: “Today, after the result, Tyrone Mings coming back was fantastic news and minutes as well for Emiliano Buendía and Boubacar Kamara.

“We tried to use different players, giving them chances and opportunities.

“We played competing and at the end we lost, but we have to keep competing.”