Aston Villa's League Cup Drama: Ineligible Player Controversy Rocks Tournament

Aston Villa will remain in the Women’s League Cup despite fielding an ineligible player, Noelle Maritz in their final Group A match against Sunderland. Villa won the game 7-0 but Maritz who was cup-tied after featuring for Arsenal earlier in the competition played in the match prompting an FA investigation. An independent tribunal deducted three points from Villa awarding them to Sunderland who progress as group winners.

Aston Villa advances to the quarter-finals as one of the best runners-up. Manchester United initially a top second-placed team is now out due to a worse goal difference than Villa’s. The decision has left Manchester United “very disappointed,” considering their options and expressing concerns about the competition’s integrity. Villa manager Carla Ward admitted the mistake and the quarter-final draw was postponed pending the investigation.