Aston Villa saw their Europa League adventure come to an end against Rapid Vienna on Thursday.
O'Neill's men come up short against Austrian opposition
Aston Villa saw their Europa League adventure come to a premature end against Rapid Vienna on Thursday.
James Milner fired Martin O'Neill's men in front from the penalty spot and John Carew added a second as the Villans looked to overcome a first-leg deficit at Villa Park.
However, Nikica Jelavic snatched a late consolation for Rapid, bringing the aggregate scores level at 2-2 and sending the Austrian outfit through.
The first half took a while to get going, with Villa enjoying plenty of the ball without really threatening.
Ashley Young, though, is capable of bringing any game to life and it was he who lit the touch paper on the half-hour mark.
Having shaken off two challenges, and broken into the box, the England winger was felled by Markus Heikkinen as he wound to shoot.
Having notched from the spot at Liverpool on Monday, Young stepped up again, but his tame effort was far too central and Helge Payer saved with ease.
The Villa playmaker was not done there, though, and won a second penalty on 38 minutes after he was sent crashing to earth by Andreas Dober.
Milner took responsibility on this occasion and made no mistake as he rifled into the corner.
The second half started in complete contrast to the opening 45 minutes, with Carlos Cuellar forced to hack off the line at one end before an audacious flick from Carew slipped narrowly wide at the other
Carew did then find the target on 53 minutes as he cut inside from the right wing and slotted calmly past Payer at his near post.
Villa survived a late scare when Jelavic stabbed a glorious opportunity wide of an open goal, but he was not to be denied.
With 14 minutes left on the clock the Rapid ace pounced on a Brad Guzan parry and fired low into the bottom corner to break Villa hearts.
Comfortable
Vienna looked comfortable on the ball early on and Stefan Hoffmann played in Christopher Drazan behind the Villa defence and Cuellar needed to be alert to intercept his low centre.
Villa retaliated and Emile Heskey was inches away from connecting with a fiercely driven cross from Milner after he had seized onto a flick-on from Carew.
The visitors could have taken the lead had Jelavic's pass to the unmarked Hoffmann been more accurate after a slick move.
Cuellar became the first player to be yellow carded after 20 minutes for a foul on Hoffmann.
The Vienna skipper took the free-kick himself and curled a 20 yarder only a couple of feet wide of Guzan's right hand post.
Villa started to build up some momentum but after 31 minutes Young was denied from the penalty spot by Payer.
He created the opportunity himself after initially being fouled outside the box by Dober, who was subsequently booked for the challenge, and then brought down inside the area by Heikkinen.
But Young drilled his penalty too close to Payer who was able to make quite a routine save to his right.
Young's frustration at the miss instantly got the better of him as he was yellow-carded - his third of the season - for bringing down Yasin Pehlivan.
Villa were in danger of losing their cool and Carew quickly followed Young in being cautioned for a challenge on Dober.
But they drew level after 38 minutes when Young earned his side another penalty - and this time Milner made no mistake.
Sprawling
Young was sent sprawling by Dober and there was more conviction about Milner's spot-kick as he lashed it past Payer into the corner of the net.
Villa were indebted to Cuellar for keeping them on terms three minutes into the second half.
Hoffmann had time to pick his spot 12 yards out and drilled in a fierce shot which the Spanish player cleared off the line with Guzan beaten.
Villa hit back and Carew back-heeled the ball just wide from a low Heskey centre after good play by Milner.
But after 52 minutes the Norwegian international marked his return to the side by giving Villa the lead.
Milner was again the instigator of the move after spotting Carew in space on the right and he cut inside before planting a low left-footed drive inside Payer's near post.
Milner then shot into the side netting after Payer had parried a shot from Young.
But then Jelavic, who had scored Rapid's goal in the first leg, somehow shot wide from three yards out after Guzan had parried
He made amends a minute later after Guzan had initially kept out a low shot from Katzer.
Payer turned over a dipping drive from Delph as Villa tried to respond to this setback.
Hoffmann should have wrapped the game up but he shot over from six yards out with the goal at his mercy.
