FA Cup: Shittu Piles More Pressure on Villa

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John Marquis scored late for Millwall

A late winner from John Marquis put Championship side Millwall into the fifth round of the FA Cup at the expense of Premier League Aston Villa.

Marquis headed in a rebound off the bar to knock Paul Lambert’s side out of their second cup competition this week.

Darren Bent gave Villa a first-half advantage when his scuffed shot rolled in following a rapid counter-attack.

But Villa’s vulnerability at set pieces saw their lead last five minutes, with Danny Shittu heading in from a corner.

The Midlands outfit were knocked out of the Capital One Cup by Bradford City of League Two on Tuesday, losing the semi-final 4-3 on aggregate, and are one place above the Premier League relegation zone following a run of six league games without a win.

Villa looked like a side under pressure in the early stages until Darren Bent, starting for the first time since the 2-1 FA Cup win over Ipswich earlier in the month, mis-kicked the ball into the net after Millwall goalkeeper David Forde had palmed away Andreas Weimann’s effort.

Shittu then headed a corner onto the roof of Shay Given’s net, but the Villa defence did not heed this warning as the hosts equalised only five minutes after Bent’s opener.

James Henry’s corner was met by Shittu at the back post and Given could not stop the defender’s header from flying past him.

The hosts were on top for the rest of the first half and after the break, with Liam Feeney firing just wide at another corner where the Premier League side looked vulnerable.
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