Aston Villa loan man shines despite EFL side's FA Cup loss

Aston Villa defender Ben Chrisene stood out as his loan side Blackburn Rovers went toe-to-toe with Newcastle United in the FA Cup on Tuesday night.

The Championship side drew 1-1 with the Premier League outfit after extra-time. Anthony Gordon scored the opener for the visitors before Sammie Szmodics levelled at Ewood Park.

Penalties then followed on and Eddie Howe's side were able to win them in front of their 7,500 travelling fans to reach the quarter-final stage.

Chrisene, 20, played the full game for Blackburn and impressed. He joined the Lancashire outfit in the January transfer window and has since made eight appearances in all competitions, six of which have come in the league.

The youngster was given the green light to head out the exit door this winter to get some more experience under his belt.

He made the move to Villa Park in 2020 from Exeter City and has played five times for the first-team to date. The full-back also had a spell away up in Scotland last year at Kilmarnock to boost his development.

Blackburn boss John Eustace was proud of his team's performance against Newcastle and told their club website: “I’m very, very proud of the efforts from the players and from the supporters with the way they really got behind the side.

“It was a special night for the club and I thought we really showcased how good we can be with and without the ball.

“We were excellently defensively and played some really exciting football. I’m really pleased with the performance.

“We set up in a way where we knew we could hurt them, we could play around them and through them.

“We knew that we could also hit them on the transition if we were solid defensively," he added.

“It was really pleasing with how we used the squad, bringing young players and changing our shape. I’m very proud of everyone involved with the football club.

“We can’t put blame on anyone out there because the performance from the squad was very, very good tonight. If it goes to penalties, it’s always a lottery, but there are so many positives to take out of it.”