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Aston Villa booked their place in the Uefa Cup group stages after a draw against Litex Lovech.

Marlon Harewood put the home side ahead on 27 minutes with a smart finish from 12 yards after a powerful run.

But Wilfried Niflore brought Lovech level when he converted a penalty on 52 minutes after Carlos Cuellar had been penalised for a foul on Wellington.

The equaliser had little effect as the Bulgarian visitors failed to trouble Villa’s obdurate defence.

With the cushion of a 3-1 advantage from the first leg, manager Martin O’Neill opted to rest six of his starting XI from the 2-1 win over Sunderland, with one eye on the Premier League match against leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Venue: Villa Park Date: Thursday, 2 October Kick-off: 2000 BST.