AMSTERDAM — A trio of Americans crossed the line on Tuesday night, with Tim Ream and Bolton rallying to claim a key 2-1 survival win at quickly sinking Aston Villa.
Both Ream and Villa right back Eric Lichaj pitched in solid outings, while Brad Guzan went unused on the bench for the beaten hosts. They took the initial lead in the 61st minute, but Wanderers had flipped the scoreline within three minutes on goals from Martin Petrov and David Ngog.
Bolton rose a spot to 18th, but can hop out of the drop zone by winning a game held in hand over the three teams just ahead of them in the table. Villa are one of them, winless in six and just three points above the trap door.
Over in Serie A, Michael Bradley and Chievo missed a great chance to gain ground in the Europa League race, falling 1-0 at Atalanta.
The US international switched from left to central midfield midway through his decent shift. Near the hour, Chievo defender Nicolas Frey nodded a Bradley restart just wide.
Suddenly punchless in attack for 308 minutes, the Flying Donkeys slipped to 10th by losing away for the first time in five tries.
