Jed Steer saved two spot-kicks as Aston Villa advanced to the Championship play-off final with a 4-3 penalty shoot-out triumph over a 10-man West Brom at The Hawthorns on Tuesday.
Craig Dawson's first-half header left the aggregate score locked at 2-2 after 120 minutes but the visitor held its nerve from 12 yards to book a trip to Wembley for the second successive season.
Mason Holgate and Ahmed Hegazi failed to convert before Tammy Abraham stroked home the decisive effort in a cruel end for Jimmy Shan's side, who had Chris Brunt sent off for a second yellow card in the 80th minute.
West Brom had returned from Saturday's 2-1 loss at Villa Park with work to do and found an unlikely route back into the tie when defender Dawson nodded in Holgate's long throw in the 29th minute.
Dean Smith's men almost gifted away a second beyond the interval as multiple ill-fated attempts at playing out from the back put them under needless pressure.
But the odds swung in their favour when Brunt earned a second booking for scything down John McGinn, and only former Villa goalkeeper Sam Johnstone's brilliant denial of Albert Adomah prevented the match from being settled inside 90 minutes.
West Brom hung on throughout 30 minutes of extra time, but Steer's twin saves in the shoot-out meant Adomah's subsequent miss counted for little.
Villa's hopes for Premier League promotion will now rest on a May 27 date with either Leeds United or Derby County, the winner of which will be decided at Elland Road on Wednesday.
Leeds holds a 1-0 first-leg lead over Frank Lampard's outfit.
Comments
SHARE