Jack Grealish described himself as "devastated" after Aston Villa fell to a 2-1 EFL Cup final loss against Manchester City at Wembley.

The lifelong Villa fan was visibly emotional at the end a match that was ultimately settled by Rodri's controversial goal, which came from a corner that should not have been awarded, with the ball clearly having come off Ilkay Gundogan last.

Grealish was proud to push Pep Guardiola's side close, with Bjorn Engels having seen a late header pushed onto the post by Claudio Bravo after Mbwana Samatta had reduced the deficit. 

"I'm devastated, but we took one of the best sides in Europe all the way to the end," he told Sky Sports. 

"They had their fair share of chances, as we knew they would, but we hit the post late on.

"The winner is a goal that should never have been a goal – it was not a corner. The referee said [Gundogan] was off the pitch when it hit him. 

"We wanted an explanation at half-time but he didn't want to give one. A club like us who haven't won anything in a while and we lose by a goal that shouldn't have stood.

"We're proud of each other. City are in the top two or three teams in Europe. We always knew it was going to be tough and now we focus on the league."

Dean Smith's side are locked in a battle for Premier League survival, sitting 19th in the table and two points adrift of safety.