Punjab FC’s late surge fell just short as its under-21 side lost 2-3 to Aston Villa’s under-18 side in the opening match of the Next Generation Cup 2024, at the Bodymoor Heath Academy Training Ground here on Thursday.
Though the side from India maintained a low block from the beginning, it shifted gears after conceding a goal just after 10 minutes, off Rory Wilson.
Ricky Shabong caught the opposition’s defence off guard and set up Omang Dodum on his left with a through ball that was guided into the net by the 17-year-old, making it all square.
But Wilson, who has caught the eye of several clubs in Europe with his stint with the Young Lions, scoring 16 goals in 13 matches last season, proved why he is the player in demand at the moment, looking miles apart from the rest of the players on the pitch.
After the break, Wilson got the ball in the final third off a counterattack and then beat goalkeeper Ayush Deshwal in a one-on-one situation to give Villa the lead.
He remained a perennial threat throughout the game, scoring twice while missing the target with a scissor-kick. He also created three clear chances, including one that was saved by Deshwal.
Villa continued to pile further misery when Travis Patterson set up Mason Cotcher, whose right-footed shot kissed the net, making it 3-1. Punjab, however, refused to throw in the towel, with Manglenthang Kipgen pulling one back in the second half.
The home side was reduced to 10 men when Patterson was given marching orders after a rash challenge on Shabong but by then, it proved too late for Punjab to find another equaliser.
Baines’s boys off to a flying start
In the other match, between Everton and Muthoot Football Academy, Leighton Baines’ boys had the last laugh, with Kean Wren netting the winner in the 1-0 win at the other Academy ground.
Baines, who recently signed a one-year-deal, at the club as the under-18 side’s head coach, said that the tournaments would give them a chance to plan the ‘effective game time’ for his players in the upcoming under-18 Premier League.
“I think it was a good game. (It was (sort) of a different challenge for our lads. We come here after pre-season and we’ve had some hard weeks of training and this gives us an opportunity to give the lads on and off the pitch,” Baines, who spent 13 years as a player at the club, said.
Muthoot, on the other hand, failed to convert multiple chances in the final third, opening its Next Gen campaign with a loss.
“I think the boys were too excited and that might have led to a lack of concentration,” sighed Anees Koraliyadan, the head coach of Muthoot FA.
“We could have gotten much more from this game by converting those chances and we are going to address them in the games ahead,” he added.
Punjab plays Premier League 2 champion Tottenham Hotspur while Muthoot will look to find a win against Crystal Palace’s under-18 side, with both matches at the same venue on Friday.
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