Mirror: The villa fans sing that John Carew is bigger than me and you. They could add 'put together', because he is one hell of a massive unit. He's got a massive heart too, as his performance proved here in securing what could turn out to be an absolutely vital point for Aston Villa. Against a physical Everton defence he led the line magnificently, and perhaps tipped the battle for fifth place and a UEFA Cup spot Villa's way. Everton are still three points ahead, but they have to visit Arsenal and entertain Newcastle, while Villa play Wigan and then mid-table West Ham, and importantly have an advantage in goal difference. Yet with only five minutes of this match left, it was the home side who thought they had the UEFA Cup berth secured. With the game locked at 1-1 after goals from Phil Neville and Gabriel Agbonlahor cancelled each other out, Joseph Yobo of all people put Everton ahead to inspire mayhem among a passionate Goodison crowd. Advertisement But straight from the restart, Villa charged down to the other end of the field, and without their opponents touching the ball, skipper Gareth Barry curled over an inviting cross, and there was Carew losing his marker Joleon Lescott to ram a header into the far corner. Villa boss Martin O'Neill said: "It was a brilliant effort, but we never gave up. It's about real proper determination to stay alive."

Sun: JOHN CAREW threw Aston Villa a Euro lifeline with a late equaliser at Goodison Park. Everton took the lead 10 minutes after the break when Phil Neville's shot was deflected into his own net by Martin Laursen. Villa levelled matters in the 80th minute through Gabriel Agbonlahor before Joseph Yobo restored the advantage just four minutes later. But Carew came to the rescue with a towering header four minutes from time to keep Martin O'Neill's men in the hunt for a UEFA Cup place. Villa skipper Gareth Barry was delighted to pick up what could prove to be a valuable point. He said: "Once the first goal went in we knew we had to press, we needed at least a draw and had to keep pressing Everton. "It's the sort of character we have shown all season. Coming back once is very good but twice is exceptional. "It's going to go all the way to the wire and it will be tight."

Sun: STEVE SIDWELL is ready to snub Newcastle and fight for his future at Chelsea. The midfielder, 25, has made just seven Premier League starts since joining from Reading last summer and is wanted by Toon and Aston Villa. However, a pal of Sidwell's said: "The truth is he would rather play for Chelsea. He is happy there and although he hasn't played much, he has never hinted he could leave in the summer."

Guardian: Only the reactions to an enthralling duel could divide the Uefa Cup aspirants. They were sufficient to reveal who holds the momentum in the fight for fifth place between Everton and Aston Villa. Whereas Martin O'Neill's side cavorted in front of the travelling support having twice come from behind to remain on the tail of Everton, those in blue appeared in need of counselling. Tim Howard buried his head, Phil Neville sank to his knees and Joseph Yobo looked to the heavens for an answer to the lapse that could prove so costly to Everton's European aspirations and, by extension, David Moyes' ability to attract improved talent this summer. A three-point margin with two games remaining says it is advantage Everton for the Uefa Cup qualifying position. Though Moyes and O'Neill agreed with that assessment, the lead appears as perilous as Everton's run-in is problematic. Arsenal away - where Everton have lost on 11 of their last 12 visits - and improved Newcastle at home represent the remaining fixtures for Moyes' side, while Wigan and West Ham await Villa. The increasingly fraught scrap for fifth is destined to go to the last game and only Villa are showing the nerve to hold on.

Guardian: Man of the match John Carew He was given little space throughout a tight contest, especially by the dogged Lee Carsley, yet he fought superbly for every scrap and gave Aston Villa a willing outlet Best moment The way he held off Joleon Lescott to direct an intelligent header beyond the Everton goalkeeper, Tim Howard, in the 86th minute and possibly tip the balance of Uefa Cup qualification in Villa's favour

Independent: Do not take your eyes off the Premier League's other thrilling denouement. Arguably the most memorable and significant encounter between these sides since their legendary League Cup final marathon went to extra time in a second replay 33 years ago, left Villa right in the race for a Uefa Cup place last night. Everton's three-point advantage might have been preserved but their visit to Arsenal might, given their solitary league point secured there since 1996, just put paid to that and if Villa also overcome Wigan next weekend a memorable final Saturday is on the cards. Villa's goal difference is one better than their rivals. Everton certainly thought they were out of sight when, six minutes from time, Joseph Yobo arrived to side-foot home a cross from Lee Carsley, the ex-Coventry and Derby player whose huge defensive contribution here demonstrated his manager's uncanny knack of making gold from baser metals. But there is a reason why Villa are the League's leading scorers away from home (35 now, to Manchester United's 31). Their late resurgence has been built around John Carew's mighty frame and it was he who clambered above Joleon Lescott - a feat not many strikers can lay claim to this season - to nod in Gareth Barry's free-kick.

Independent: Man of the match: Young

Daily Mail: The UEFA Cup may have its detractors, but no one can doubt what it means to Everton and Aston Villa after a breathtaking finale to their so-called European eliminator at Goodison yesterday. Everton appeared to be on course for a win that would have left them within a point of qualification after Phil Neville claimed only his second goal of the season, and third of his Goodison career, in the 56th minute. If the thought of the former Manchester United defender emerging as match-winner stretched credibility, it was nothing compared to what followed as a burst of three goals in six minutes, coupled with a touchline dust-up between substitutes Marlon Harewood and Victor Anichebe and an injury-time Joseph Yobo header against a post, left the contest for fifth spot on a knife-edge. Neville's deflected strike looked like proving decisive, but seasoned Goodison followers might well have known better. Just as Everton seemed to favour doing it the hard way in the pre-David Moyes days of battling against relegation, so the quest for another European campaign seems certain to keep nerves jangling until the final day. If anything, Jon Carew's point-saving 85th-minute header may just have swung the initiative Villa's way, given they face Wigan at home and West Ham away, as opposed to an Everton run-in of Arsenal away and Newcastle at home.

Daily Mail: ASTON VILLA (4-4-2): Carson 6; Mellberg 6, Knight 6 (Berger 75, 6), Laursen 7, Bouma 6 (Harewood 78); Petrov 6, Reo-Coker 7, Barry 8, Young 7; Agbonlahor 6, Carew 7. Booked: Petrov, Young, Harewood. Referee: Phil Dowd. Man of the match: Gareth Barry.

Telegraph: Aside from a free-kick from Ashley Young that crashed down from the underside of Tim Howard's crossbar, there was nothing in the first half to suggest what was to come. Fittingly, the breakthrough came from Phil Neville, who has brought to Everton the winning mentality that is part of the atmosphere at Old Trafford, but who has also received more than his fair share of abuse from his own supporters. His shot, driven in from the edge of the area, required a deflection from Martin Laursen, but few neutrals would have begrudged Neville his luck. And until the hitherto anonymous Gabriel Agbonlahor slid in to convert what appeared a straightforward corner from Gareth Barry, that appeared to be that. Aston Villa did not exactly look bankrupt of ideas, but they were certainly short of change. However, Martin O'Neill has not earned his reputation as one of the game's foremost tacticians without an ability to alter the course of a match. This he did spectacularly, withdrawing two defenders for two forwards to create a 3-2-5 formation last seen when England were refusing to compete in World Cup tournaments because they would so obviously win. "We have scored more away goals this season than any other team in the division, most of them through very good play," said the Aston Villa manager. "Today was about determination to stay alive. We made the changes because what was the point of staying put? We had to get something out of the game and we needed firepower and creativity. The players had to adjust to the system when we equalised and again when suddenly we needed another goal. The tactics were changing with each minute and with each attack."

Times: Amid the drama of a thrilling title race and a nip-and-tuck relegation battle, it has been easy to forget that there is an equally competitive fight for fifth position, although such an oversight will have been corrected by the events at Goodison Park yesterday. For all of 79 minutes it was a rather turgid affair, but no one had reckoned on a climax that, come the final whistle, had left just about everyone who witnessed it breathless, and Everton claiming a narrow advantage in pursuit of the one automatic Uefa Cup place offered by the Barclays Premier League. Twice Everton led, twice Aston Villa drew level and, with so little to separate the teams, it is with a degree of confidence that one can say that this contest will to go to the wire. "Where do I start?" Martin O'Neill, the Villa manager, said when asked to summarise the match, and he had a point. Sporting a three-point lead over Villa with two games left, Everton are in the stronger position, although with Arsenal to play away on Sunday - Wigan Athletic visit Villa Park the day before - it would probably be no surprise to see both teams going into the final day of the season all square. "This season we are the top goalscorers away from home in the league and I don't think that can be a fluke," O'Neill said. "The way we kept going in the last 15 or 20 minutes epitomised our efforts this season."

Times: Aston Villa (4-3-1-2): S Carson 6 O Mellberg 6 M Laursen 6 Z Knight 6 W Bouma 6 N Reo-Coker 6 S Petrov 6 G Barry 8 A Young Y 7 G Agbonlahor 6 J Carew 8 Substitutes: P Berger (for Knight, 76min), M Harewood Y (for Bouma, 78).

Mirror: Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill will discuss the future of keeper Scott Carson at the end of the season.

Sky Sports: Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill hailed his side's spirit after they fought back twice to clinch a 2-2 draw at Everton and keep their European hopes alive. Phil Neville's deflected strike broke the deadlock in the 56th minute before Gabriel Agbonlahor drew Villa level with 10 minutes remaining to spark a pulsating finish. Joseph Yobo looked to have claimed the winner when he restored Everton's lead six minutes from time, but within 90 seconds, John Carew grabbed Villa's second equaliser. The draw keeps O'Neill's men in the race for fifth place as Everton remain three points clear of Villa with two games left to play. "We'd have been really disappointed if we lost the game," the Villa boss told Sky Sports.

Mirror: How much does it cost to break into the Big Four? It's a good question and one that makes Bill Kenwright's hair turn greyer and adds furrows to Randy Lerner's brow. Everton and Aston Villa have earned the right to be rated the next best things to the elite in the Premier League, but the price of cracking that cosy little cartel is becoming bigger and bigger. The annual hand-outs from the Champions League are such that the gap will only get larger unless one of those quartet self-destruct in a way not seen since Peter Ridsdale's time at Leeds. So as David Moyes and Martin O'Neill compile their wish-lists for their chairmen and money men in the coming weeks the sums may no longer work out. Everton may need two or three midfielders, possibly a striker and a couple of young fringe men to make sure their squad is not exposed again in the final stages. Advertisement Villa are short of a top-class right-back, while O'Neill is eyeing centre-halves and will have an 'I want, I want' tantrum at Lerner until he lands James Milner from Newcastle.

Sydney Morning Herald: Aston Villa twice came from behind to earn a pulsating 2-2 draw at Everton today and prolong the battle for the English Premier league's fifth place and its UEFA Cup slot. Defender Phil Neville's deflected shot after 55 minutes put Everton on course for a win that would have left them six clear of their rivals and virtually assured of a return to Europe. However, they were pegged back by Gabriel Agbonlahor's equaliser after 80 minutes.

Irish Independent: It may not carry the screaming tension of the matches that Chelsea, Manchester United, Fulham and Bolton will endure, but tell nobody at Goodison Park that the Uefa Cup does not matter. In the desperate closing moments, when Aston Villa fielded no fewer than five forwards, this resembled a cup final -- not one in the Champions League, but between two junior schools throwing everything into one attack after another. And when it was done, and the rain, the murk and the drama had lifted, it was unclear where the advantage in the struggle to finish fifth and guarantee European football lay.

Coverage From Abroad

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