Watkins punishes Liverpool as Villa seal Champions League place

Premier League - Aston Villa v Liverpool - Villa Park, Birmingham, Britain - May 15, 2026 Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins scores their third goal Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers

Ollie Watkins scored twice as Aston Villa eased to a 4-2 Premier League victory over Liverpool on Friday to seal Champions League qualification for next season and leave their visitors looking over their shoulder at the chasing pack.

The win moves Villa into fourth place with 62 points from their 37 games, leapfrogging their opponents, who have 59 points from the same number of matches.

Liverpool remain vulnerable to being caught by both Bournemouth and Brighton & Hove Albion in the race for a Champions League place as they slipped to a 12th defeat of the season with a single point from the last nine available.

Morgan Rogers gave Villa a first half lead before Virgil van Dijk equalised for Liverpool early in the second period and then got another in added time.

But Watkins’ double and a brilliant late fourth from John McGinn sealed the win for Unai Emery’s side, who head into Wednesday’s Europa League final against Freiburg in buoyant mood.