Burnley 2 Aston Villa 2: Sloppy Villa held at Turf Moor

Istanbul can wait for now, Villa still have work to do in the Premier League.

This point at Burnley saw Unai Emery’s team take another step closer to securing Champions League when a leap was desired.

Now four points clear in fifth place with two matches to play, the odds are still in their favour but they cannot yet breathe easy. Friday’s visit of Liverpool, when a win will be enough to put things beyond doubt, promises to be a far bigger occasion than Emery would have ideally liked just five days before the Europa League final.

Sunday’s draw at Turf Moor summed up a second half of the season where Villa have made things far harder than they had to be.

Trailing early to a Burnley team with the worst home record in the league, they fought back to lead through Ross Barkley and Ollie Watkins, only to gift the home side an equaliser.

Villa then could not find a winner, Emi Buendia seeing late appeals for a penalty waved away.

Emery’s men are still very much in the driving seat for a top-five finish and could guarantee it with a win at home to Liverpool on Friday.

But after defeats to Fulham and Tottenham in the league, this was another opportunity missed to ease the pressure and continue the feelgood factor, following Thursday’s euphoric Europa League semi-final win over Nottingham Forest.

Villa were wasteful but also too casual. With better finishing, Burnley might have claimed a first top flight win since October.

A week on from making seven changes against Tottenham, Emery made just three at Turf Moor, Tyrone Mings and Ian Maatsen coming back into defence, with Ross Barkley also restored to the line-up.

Yet in a subdued atmosphere, where the only noise came from the visiting supporters, Villa again began badly.

Morgan Rogers should have done better with an early chance created by an excellent John McGinn pass, instead pulling a first time effort well wide of the far post.

Villa were then caught on the counter. McGinn was unable to get out to put pressure on Lesley Ugochukwu, whose shot from outside the box was parried by Martinez, straight into the path of Jaidon Anthony who lifted the ball over the keeper and into the net, for what was the first goal for the Clarets at Turf Moor since February.

It was far too lax from Villa’s perspective and they were fortunate things did not soon get worse.

Flemming first saw a shot blocked after Mings had dallied and been caught on the ball by Hannibal and was then guilty of a dreadful miss, shooting wide of the target with just Martinez to beat after Ezri Konsa had slipped trying to block Loum Tchaouna’s cross.

Villa finally awoke. Barkley should have levelled when he skewed a McGinn cross wide from inside the six-yard box, with Clarets keeper Max Weiss - on Premier League debut - tipping over a drive from Youri Tielemans soon after.

The visitors then thought they had levelled through Watkins, after the striker arrived unmarked at the far post to nod Morgan Rogers’ cross into the net. A VAR check, however, revealed the striker had been half a boot offside.

Villa quickly brushed off the setback. Barkley forced Weiss into a decent stop with a drive the keeper tipped round the post and from the corner, the midfielder raced to meet McGinn’s delivery at the near post and flick a header into the far corner, Kyle Walker’s efforts to clear only seeing the ball hit the roof of the net.

It was the visitors who would have been more disappointed to hear the half-time whistle and the hosts duly carved out the first big chance of the second half.

Martinez back peddled toward goal when he looked favourite to reach a ball over the top and was fortunate to see Hannibal’s cross just evade a lunging Flemming.

Villa were getting sloppy again and Watkins was almost the villain when a misdirected pass set up a Burnley counter.

Moments later he was the hero, racing on to Martinez’s goal kick and after bringing the ball under control with his first touch, sending the second beyond Weiss and into the net.

Turnaround complete, that should have been the moment Villa seized control.

Instead, they flung Burnley a lifeline. Cash dawdled in possession, was robbed by Anthony and a neat flick from Hannibal took the ball into the path of Flemming. This time he did not miss.

Barkley twice saw shots blocked at close range as Villa looked to restore their lead. Lucas Digne replaced Maatsen off the bench and sent in a cross which McGinn, arriving unmarked at the far post, could only head wide.

Josh Laurent brought a smart stop from Martinez with a long range effort before Villa saw appeals for a penalty waved away when substitute Emi Buendia went down in the box.

Burnley (4-2-3-1): Weiss, Walker, Tuanzeve, Esteve, Pires, Florentino (Ward-Prowse 87), Ugochukwu, Tchaouna, Mejbri (Foster 69), Anthony (Bruun Larsen 87), Flemming (Amdouni 79) Subs not used: Hartman, Humphreys, Broja, Dubravka (gk).

Villa (4-2-3-1): Martinez, Cash (Bogarde 80), Konsa, Mings, Maatsen (Digne 74), Tielemans, Lindelof (Buendia 74), McGinn (Bailey 85), Barkley (Luiz 80), Rogers, Watkins Subs: Torres, Abraham, Sancho, Bizot (gk).