Hamburg 3 Aston Villa 1:THIS WAS clearly not what Nigel Kennedy had in mind when the Aston Villa supporter and world-famous violinist told an audience that included Martin O'Neill that his team would put on a "masterclass" against Hamburg. O'Neill might have found Kennedy's musical talent enchanting at a jazz night in Hamburg on the eve of this fixture but there was nothing to celebrate on the pitch as Villa suffered a chastening defeat in Germany.
Hamburg totally outplayed a depleted Villa team, with the German club recording a comfortable victory to cement top place in Group F and leave O'Neill hoping the draw in Nyon tomorrow is kind after his side finished third and invited a potentially tougher tie in the last 32. Villa will meet one of the Uefa Cup group winners in the knockout stages.
O'Neill had vowed his team would not be "sitting ducks" here but two Hamburg goals in the opening half-hour, allied to the manager's decision to rest eight players of the likely starting side for Saturday's trip to West Ham, suggested this might be a long and unforgiving night for the visitors. Hamburg, with their winter break following this fixture, could afford to pick a full-strength side and the quality between the two line-ups was painfully clear.
Nowhere were Villa's shortcomings more evident than in the centre of defence as Zat Knight and Carlos Cuellar endured a torrid first half. Knight has "previous" for making errors in a Villa shirt but the 3,000 travelling fans will have been alarmed at Cuellar's failure to prevent Ivica Olic from heading beyond the exposed Brad Guzan. The Spaniard was outmuscled as Olic stooped to meet Dennis Aogo's cross.
Villa were already a goal down at that point, with Mladen Petric steering a low volley inside the far post in the 18th minute following Piotr Trochowski's wonderful 60-yard pass. While the finish and build-up were impressive, Knight's part in the concession could not be ignored. The former Fulham defender was caught ball-watching and badly out of position.
Trochowski's volley was saved by Guzan in the 34th minute as Villa continued to struggle to gain a foothold on a poor playing surface before Marcell Jansen, spotting the US goalkeeper off his line, propelled a 30-yard drive that struck the crossbar.
A change in personnel might have proved more beneficial than a switch to a new formation as Hamburg threatened to inflict a rout. O'Neill was furious when play was allowed to continue after Craig Gardner collided with Frank Rost, the Hamburg goalkeeper, but the Villa manager's fury might just as easily have been directed at Cuellar, who was again embarrassed by Olic. The striker, who is a January transfer target for Bayern Munich, shrugged off the former Rangers defender following Joris Mathijsen's long ball before despatching his second.
How relieved Cuellar must have been to see the Hamburg forward leave the field midway through the second half. Villa did grab a consolation seven minutes from time, when Nathan Delfouneso stuck out a leg to turn in Moustapha Salifou's cross. It could have been a positive footnote but for Sidwell's second yellow after he tripped David Jarolim, which darkened O'Neill's mood further, with the midfielder now suspended for the first leg in the next round.
HAMBURG: Rost, Boateng, Reinhardt, Mathijsen, Aogo, Trochowski (Ben-Hatira 89), Jarolim, Benjamin, Jansen, Petric (Thiago Neves 78), Olic (Guerrero 67). Subs not used: Hesl, Demel, Pitroipa, Torun. Booked: Mathijsen.
ASTON VILLA: Guzan, Luke Young, Cuellar, Knight, Shorey, Gardner (Bannan 61), Sidwell, Reo-Coker, Salifou, Harewood, Delfouneso. Subs not used: Friedel, Davies, Petrov, Clark, Herd, Lowry. Sent off: Sidwell (84). Booked: Knight, Sidwell.
Referee: Aleksei Nikolayev (Russia).
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