Jubilant Aston Villa icon Gabby Agbonlahor hails Unai Emery and pokes fun at ‘ghost’ Harry Kane after historic win over Bayern Munich
A delighted Gabby Agbonlahor shared his joy live on talkSPORT after an historic night for Aston Villa.
Substitute hero John Duran lobbed Manuel Neuer with 79 minutes on the clock to seal a magical Champions League win for Villa over Bayern Munich.
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Villa Park was rocking as the Midlands club produced a memorable repeat of their famous 1982 European Cup final victory over the German giants.
"I was lucky to be there tonight," said a jubilant Gabby, as Villa's all-time top scorer called into the Sports Bar to share his joy.
"There is no better feeling. Football is the number one sport in the world.
"It was an emotional night and I'm proud to be a Villa fan."
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Prince William was among the Villa fans in attendance at a raucous Villa Park, and like Gabby was overwhelmed with the celebrations:
After the game, William said: "I've lost my voice. I can't quite believe it. 42 years."
Unai Emery's men were fully deserving of the three points in the second round of fixtures in the league stage, with many of Bayern's stars unable to showcase their talent.
One of those was Kane, whose ten strikes in seven appearances prior to Wednesday night also included four goals against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League last time out.
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The England captain was far from his best, so much so that Villa cult hero and talkSPORT co-host Agbonlahor joked about his performance afterwards.
"The tactics of Unai Emery, that's not his style," he said. "But that's what your coaches that have done well in European competitions before [do], let's sit back, let's frustrate Bayern Munich.
"Second-half, we opened up a little bit and we win 1-0. You know, don't be open like Celtic were last night and they get pumped 7-1 [by Borussia Dortmund], that's what it's about, isn't it?
"At this level, don't play into Bayern Munich's hands, frustrate them like we did.
"Harry Kane was a ghost, it was Harry Kane from the Euros, because of our tactics against them."
Agbonlahor was referring to Kane's performances throughout Euro 2024 for England as the Three Lions fell to defeat in the final against Spain.
The 31-year-old scored three goals throughout the tournament, the joint-highest tally with five other players, but many fans believed he could've scored more as England struggled in the groups.
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Kane has been in strong form for Bayern at the beginning of this season, but his blank at Villa came just days after he also failed to score against Bayer Leverkusen.
After revealing his thoughts on the legendary striker, Agbonlahor took the opportunity to praise Emery's impact at Villa.
Cundy reminded him of how the Spaniard has transformed their fortunes in less than two years since his appointment, taking them from a Premier League relegation battle to the Champions League.
"This is what the owners wanted though," Agbonlahor explained.
"It wasn't working under [Steven] Gerrard, they said, 'We're going to go and pay compensation to Villarreal. Whatever it takes, three, four, £5million.'
"And he's come in here, no messing around no more. This club has got pedigree in Europe, winning the Champions League in 1982, that's where these owners want to be.
"We're not here to just compete and, 'Let's have a little go and see how we do,' we're here to get as far as we can.
"And that today by the way, the last 41 Champions League games Bayern Munich have played in the group stage, 37 wins, four draws.
"Unai Emery comes along, 1-0 win. What does that say about this guy, this manager? We're so lucky to have him."
Villa's win against Bayern has followed their 3-0 victory against Young Boys to send them sixth in the Champions League standings.
They currently sit above European giants that include Barcelona, AC Milan and Bayern, as well as the record 15-time winners Real Madrid.
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Bologna, Club Brugge, Juventus, RB Leipzig, Monaco and Celtic will come as other dangerous opposition for them in the league phase.
However, after nights like Wednesday, Villa and Agbonlahor will fully believe that anything is possible as they eye a spot in the last 16.
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