Aston Villa kept their European dreams alive after beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 at Villa Park on Saturday.
An early goal from Jacob Ramsey dealt the visitors a blow, as they went into the game three points clear of the hosts.
Douglas Luiz’s second-half strike from a free kick all but sealed the victory, before Harry Kane stole one back from a controversial penalty.
Prior to kick-off, the game was classed as possibly the "last opportunity" to push for a European finish by manager Unai Emery, a test that his side passed with flying colours in the Midlands sunshine.
It was a relatively even encounter, with Spurs controlling 51% of the possession and both teams scoring close in terms of expected goals. Ryan Mason’s team slightly edged the hosts in this area despite defeat with 1.37 xG to Villa’s 1.18 xG – as per Sofascore.
The four-time Europa League winner’s side was the more continuous threat in attack, as told by Sofascore, hitting Spurs with eight shots, four of which were on target, and eight corners to their three. The hosts also registered three big chances, missing two and hitting the woodwork once.
Emery praised his team’s ability to keep to their game plan when speaking to the club’s media after the game, however, looked ahead to the remaining games of the season where he stressed that it’s "most important to be consistent."
While it was an afternoon of top performances by Villa, namely that of Ramsey in forward areas, one name stood out as one of the best, with goal-scorer Douglas Luiz taking a lot of credit for his ability to be the "tempo-setter" in midfield, as described by Birmingham Live’s Ashley Preece in the post-match ratings.
How did Douglas Luiz perform against Tottenham Hotspur?
The Brazilian was at the heart of all things positive for his side, not just through scoring an audacious winner from a set piece, but his overall game in central midfield.
With a Sofascore match rating of 7.5, the 25-year-old was the highest performer on the pitch at Villa Park when it mattered most, even outranking the aforementioned Ramsey.
The midfielder was everywhere, registering 77 touches in all areas of the pitch where he maintained threat and caused threat going forward in the engine room.
The Rio de Janeiro-born player ended the 90 minutes with a 94% passing accuracy, making 61 of his 65 passes count in an integral area of play. Out of which, he registered one key pass, and executed six out of seven long balls that he attempted.
Defensively he made one clearance and attempted one ground duel, in a balanced display that saw him lauded as the "complete package" by one Villa account on Twitter following the important victory.
His goal was the icing on the cake for his dominance in midfield, where he fired a curling shot from a free-kick at 25-yards past Fraser Forster to ultimately gift his side the win to keep their European dreams alive.
With two challenging fixtures remaining, the Brazilian will have to replicate such performances against both Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion to keep his side on track for Europe.