Aston Villa moved to the brink of a place in the League Cup final
with a 1-0 win at Blackburn on Thursday.
England midfielder James Milner scored in the 23rd minute to
give Villa victory in the first leg of their semifinal and a firm
advantage ahead of next week's return at Villa Park.
If Villa avoids defeat at home it will reach its first final
for 10 years and meet Manchester City or Manchester United in the
Feb. 28 final.
Milner hit his seventh goal of the season after finishing a
move he started.
With Blackburn pushing players forward to put Villa
goalkeeper Brad Guzan under pressure, Milner took a pass from
defender James Collins and set off.
He passed out to Stewart Downing on the right wing, and the
winger beat fullback Pascal Chimbonda to hit a cross into the area
that beat former Spain defender Michel Salgado, and was dispatched
with a powerful shot past goalkeeper Paul Robinson.
Blackburn replaced defender Lars Jacobsen at halftime and
improved after being largely dominated for the first half.
Blackburn forward Nikola Kalinic twice hit the post, first
with a shot from a cross and then from a touchline pass by
Chimbonda, but Villa managed to stifle the home attack by reverting
to a five-man midfield.
Blackburn must at least score at Villa Park to have any
chance to reaching the final of a competition it won in 2002.
Rovers have won just once and scored eight goals in 11 away games
in the Premier League, in which it was 13th and trailed Villa by 14
points.
Villa won the League Cup most recently in 1996, outclassing
Leeds 3-0 for its fifth win in the competition. Only Liverpool,
with seven victories, has won the title more often.
Manchester City hosts Manchester United in the first leg of
their semifinal on Tuesday. United hosts the second match on Jan.
27.
