PSG star branded the 'most overrated defender in Europe' after Aston Villa scare

04/15/2025 06:23 PM

Paris Saint-Germain legend Marquinhos was branded the ‘most overrated centre-back in Europe’ after the French champions survived a huge scare against Aston Villa in the Champions League.

Already leading by two goals following an impressive 3-1 win at the Parc des Princes last week, the quarter-final tie looked dead and buried when PSG raced into a 2-0 lead at Villa Park.

But Aston Villa got a goal back before half-time and then scored twice in three second-half minutes to set up a thrilling finale.

Unai Emery’s side created a number of chances to level the tie at 5-5 on aggregate but Paris Saint-Germain just about held on to progress to the semi-finals.

PSG, recently crowned Ligue 1 champions, will face Premier League giants Arsenal or La Liga heavyweights Real Madrid in the next round.

Despite PSG edging past Aston Villa, Marquinhos was singled out for criticism by ex-Villa boss Martin O’Neill, who described the Brazilian as ‘the most overrated centre-back in European football.

Marquinhos, 30, has won ten league titles at Paris Saint-Germain and has 97 caps for Brazil.

‘Marquinhos, for me, is the most overrated centre-back in European football,’ O’Neill said on Premier Sports.

‘I do honestly think that. I think he is way overrated; he is looking in all the time when the ball is being whipped in.

‘If I am his manager, I am expecting him to be dominating in there. I know he has not got the size but I still expect him to dominate.

‘He must be a very decent captain in terms of giving language out.’

When O’Neill was reminded that Marquinhos has won a bagful of trophies in Paris, the ex-Premier League manager added: ‘Well PSG, with respect, will win the league, you know? Seriously.’

PSG ‘deserved’ to go through

Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique insisted his side deserved to advance at the expense of Aston Villa.

‘I think so, simple as that,’ he said. ‘We cannot forget, this is the Champions League and the other team has a lot of quality.

‘Aston Villa played with a lot of intensity. The whole two matches, we deserved to win. The second year in a row in the semi-finals and we want to go into the next phase.

‘I think have the best squad in the world, not only the best goalkeeper. You have a lot of quality players at a club like PSG. That’s football and that’s competition.

‘At 2-0 down, they didn’t have anything to lose because they lost the first match and at half-time in the first half. The atmosphere in the stadium was very nice.’

Emery ‘proud’ of Aston Villa’s heart

Unai Emery, meanwhile, insisted he was ‘very proud’ of his team despite their agonising Champions League exit.

‘I am very proud of everything,’ he said. ‘Getting to this level is the next step forward, I want to try to win with Aston Villa.

‘We played two legs, we competed well and it wasn’t even. Today we competed better and we were close to the result.

‘It is now most important to get Europe again. The most important competition is the Champions League. The challenge we have for the last six matches is to try and get the Champions League.’

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