Aston Villa captain Ezri Konsa had to be restrained from confronting his own supporters at full-time following Friday night’s shock defeat to Wolves.
Villa’s season took another downturn as Unai Emery’s side slumped to a 2-0 loss against their local rivals at Molineux Stadium.
Goals from Joao Gomes and Rodrigo Gomes secured the victory for Wolves, ensuring they avoided the embarrassment of recording the lowest points tally in Premier League history.
The result leaves Villa’s top-four position under threat. They could drop to fifth on Sunday should Manchester United win their game in hand against Crystal Palace – a setback that could seriously damage their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Emotions appeared to boil over at the final whistle, with Konsa seen angrily remonstrating with travelling Villa supporters before being pulled away by his team-mates and coaching staff. The 28-year-old was earlier in the match seen sharing a heated moment with Wolves player Toti Gomes.
Villa have not won at Molineux since 2020, and their disappointing run continued, with Emery heading straight down the tunnel at full-time without pausing to shake Rob Edwards’ hand before doing so.
Ezri Konsa was seen angrily remonstrating with travelling Villa supporters before being pulled away by his team-mates and coaching staff at the final whistle
The 28-year-old was earlier in the match seen sharing a heated moment with Wolves player Toti Gomes
Aston Villa’s director of football operations, Damian Vidagany, acknowledged the fans’ frustrations in a post on X after the match.
He wrote: ‘Dressing room after match was very sad and Unai lifted us.. (sic) The fans you have the right to feel whatever as football belongs to you. As a professionals we know it, we face it and we take our responsibility but we must always keep balance, look for solutions and run away from extreme emotions and self destruction.
‘Unai and the boys will make us raise again and when that happen and we hopefully celebrate together, we won’t remember this night. We win together and we lose together… Keep unity and balance inside in nights like this one is what makes the difference between a to be a rollercoaster or a STRONG PROJECT That is WHAT WE ARE. UTV!’
Emery, who had appeared to calm down by the time he met the media, called on the fans to lift his side.
‘In September I was worried about being in the relegation zone,’ said Emery, referring to Villa’s poor start. ‘Then maybe a month ago I was dreaming of fighting with Manchester City and Arsenal for the title.
‘We are having a great season and I want to tell our fans now that we need them. We are grateful to them for being with us but at Villa Park we need their help. We need to be together – players, coaches, fans, everyone.
‘Our points total is similar to clubs who have finished in the top five before. We are competing against great teams and for them it is necessary to finish in the Champions League. We need to keep our position.’
