Aston Villa

We asked for your thoughts after Tuesday's Champions League game between Aston Villa and Club Brugge.

Here are some of your comments:

Rob: A performance that gives us hope for the season ahead. Great displays right across the team with the added bonus of accomplished cameos from Alysson, Lamare Bogarde and Ross Barkley off the bench. John McGinn, Joao Gomes and Boubacar Kamara looked composed throughout, and Zion Suzuki showed his quality once again. The future is bright.

Prit: Villa finally got their season going. It was a very well-deserved victory and despite hanging on for the last half hour, Villa fully deserved the three points. Good to see Nicolas Jackson get his first goal, a commanding performance by Pau Torres and Joao Gomes was very self-assured - he just needs to cut out the bookings.

Ged: A decent performance at a very tricky venue against a good team. Club Brugge rarely lose at home. Some standout performances for Villa, and Jackson earned his goal - he ran his heart out this match.

Marshall: Aston Villa were too negative, passing around at the back instead of attacking. They do it too often when there are better options available.

Dennice: Still shaky, but it feels good to start winning this season, and winning away from home in the Champions League is the icing on the cake. Hopefully the lads will be boosted by this result when we host Nottingham Forest over the weekend.

Darren: Good to get a win and a few goals. Villa were very good in patches, but also showed that we are still trying to evolve and gel as a team and that it will take time.

Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Arsenal should have been awarded a penalty at Aston Villa for Ian Maatsen's challenge on Bruno Guimaraes, the Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel has ruled.

The KMI Panel added that the Villa defender should also have received a second yellow card for the foul, and been sent off.

The Gunners were leading 1-0 eight minutes into stoppage time when Guimaraes broke into the box and Maatsen made a desperate attempt to stop the Brazil international getting his shot away.

The KMI Panel voted 5:0 that it was an on-field error by referee Jarred Gillett, and a missed intervention by video assistant referee James Bell.

"Clear contact was made on the attacker's standing leg and Maatsen made no contact with the ball," the KMI Panel said.

It added that "the challenge was reckless and therefore a second caution should have been awarded".

It is the first refereeing error logged for Arsenal since the VAR failed to intervene to overturn Myles Lewis-Skelly's red card against Wolves in January 2025.

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Former Chelsea and Everton winger Pat Nevin says you "can't underestimate the importance" of Aston Villa's 3-2 Champions League win over Club Brugge on Tuesday "for their entire season".

Villa breathed life into their season as they edged to a narrow Champions League victory which marked their first win and first goals of the campaign.

"Just to score some goals is important for Villa," Nevin told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast.

"That does really work on the confidence of the players.

"When the confidence is flowing and you're scoring goals it becomes kind of easy and you pass it in and don't think about it. But, for a team that can also happen.

"The fact they hadn't scored a goal so far this season and so many important and vital players had left the club - it was always going to have a huge effect of the teams' confidence. They needed something to lift them very quickly.

"I don't think you can't underestimate the importance of the win, not just for the Champions League but for their entire season. Particularly to also get three goals and for their new striker Nicolas Jackson to score too.

"I do always hope the very best for them because the attitude is great. The manager is brilliant with what he does, he doesn't seem to complain too much even when it's all ripped out from underneath him for financial reasons.

"But, I still think in reality it is going to be a tough season for Villa fans."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

It is a new chapter for Aston Villa and, against Club Brugge, they turned the page.

A first win of the season, albeit more nervy than anticipated, lit the spark for Unai Emery's side.

The visitors were in a commanding and deserved position at half-time, John McGinn's opener making him the club's all-time record European goalscorer with 12.

Emi Buendia's strike and Nicolas Jackson's first Villa goal - benefiting from Yann Sommer's rush of blood - had them cruising.

Brugge were poor and George Hemmings, Villa's first Champions League/European Cup teenage starter in 43 years, could have had at least one.

Yet the hosts made it uncomfortable for Unai Emery's men with Nicolo Tresoldi's penalty after Aaron Wan-Bissaka's blatant handball setting up an anxious last half an hour, during which Tresoldi hit the post.

It can be viewed as a blessing in disguise that Villa had to battle their way through and ride out the hosts' pressure to earn their first win of the season - adding the grit and determination to the quality of the opening half to prove they can get the job done.

Not that they needed the evidence themselves, Emery and his squad always have that faith and the internal desire to progress no matter the obstacle.

It was the same last season. A below-par 1-0 win over limited Bologna - thanks to another McGinn goal - got Villa going and they hardly looked back.

The victory kicked off the staggering run of 17 wins in 20 games which formed the backbone of returning to the Champions League and giving Villa momentum to win the Europa League.

Since then, of course, Villa's spine has been torn out and Emery has to integrate 10 new players into his methodical methods.

Three points in Brugge may not spark another relentless run but it gives Emery and Villa the foundations of this new era.

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery, speaking after Villa's 3-2 victory over Club Brugge: "I am so happy today. Thankfully, because we know how we are in the way. What the responsibility we have and I have. But the players as well they have responsibility.

"They need to to keep our standards high to show everybody this is the way that we can achieve the process in our targets and, of course, we are improving after Brighton, after Arsenal, after Hull City. Today another step forward.

"Collectively, tactically, the structure, individually, this victory is through it and, of course, we must work hard. It is the only way. This is the process that we must try to set strong [standards]. Today we did one very important step forward to show it and be resilient in the second half when we were struggling.

"Of course, very important for this Champions League to start with those three points. Hopefully, it gives us confidence for the next matches in the league. Saturday Nottingham Forest, then Carabao Cup, then Tottenham.

"Nicolas Jackson very important [goal] for him. Progressively getting minutes with some players, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, after the injury of Cash it was very important, but he was so tired.

"Again, a good match played Hemmings, again he is improving. We must try to add more players, new players in this structure, this demand and this process we are."

Aston Villa captain John McGinn, speaking to Uefa: "It's a new Villa and it was a big test for the new players to dig in.

"It was Joao Gomes and George Hemmings' first Champions League game.

"It's not easy to go away at a place like this in difficult weather conditions. Club Brugge were pushing and pushing and pushing and we had to stand strong. We managed to do that.

"It was so important to show a real gritty performance and get a victory at a very, very tough place to play."

Did you know?

• Aston Villa have won 18 of their 28 matches across the Champions League and European Cup, with their 64.3% win percentage the best of any team in the competition's history to play 10+ matches.

• John McGinn netted his 12th goal in major European competitions for Aston Villa, surpassing Ollie Watkins to become the all-time leading goalscorer for the Villans in Europe.

Listen above to Unai Emery or on BBC Sounds

Aston Villa XI:

Zion Suzuki: One solid early save denied Jan Virgili but he could not stop Hugo Vetlesen's leveller and was sent the wrong way by Nicolo Tresoldi for Club Brugge's penalty. 6

Aaron Wan-Bissaka: A full debut for the right-back - in place of the injured Matty Cash. He could not stop the cross for Brugge's equaliser and conceded the second-half penalty. 5

Pau Torres: His run through the absent Brugge midfield set up John McGinn's opener, and he helped Villa ride out the pressure as the hosts chased a leveller. 7

Victor Lindelof: The defender has rarely let Villa down since his arrival on a free last summer, and was solid once again in Belgium. 7

Ian Maatsen: Booked early for dissent after failing to win a throw-in so had to walk a tightrope but did that well and held firm as Brugge pushed. 6

Joao Gomes: Returned for the first time since his opening-day red card and set up Emi Buendia to score. 6

Boubacar Kamara: The midfielder made more passes than any other Villa player and tried to keep things ticking in the centre while battling second-half Brugge pressure. 7

John McGinn: The captain scored Villa's first goal of the season with a fine strike and forced Yann Sommer into a save. He is now the club's highest scorer in Europe with 12. 8

Emi Buendia: Shot wide early but netted his first since scoring in the Europa League final in May and remains crucial to the Villa rebuild. 7

George Hemmings: The first teenager to start for Villa in Europe's elite competition since 1983 should have marked the occasion with an early goal. 6

Nicolas Jackson: The striker helped start the move for Buendia's goal and scored his first Villa goal after benefiting from Sommer's rush of blood. 7

Aston Villa substitutes:

Lamare Bogarde (on 68, Wan-Bissaka): 6

Alysson (on 68, Buendia): 6

Ross Barkley (on 68, Kamara): 6

Tammy Abraham (on 81, Jackson): 6

Subs not used: Marco Bizot, James Wright, Tyrone Mings, Matteo Ruggeri, Alejandro Garnacho, Ibrahim Mbaye.

Read the match report and see how you rated the players

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Aston Villa's performance

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Wednesday for a selection of your replies.

There are six games in the Champions League on Tuesday as the 36-team league phase gets under way, and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Club Brugge v Aston Villa (17:45)

• AEK Athens v LASK (17:45)

• Porto v Manchester City - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Borussia Dortmund v Villarreal

• Lille V Real Betis

• Real Madrid v Inter Milan

Kick-off times 20:00 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Champions League commentary on your smart speaker. Just say "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play Porto v Manchester City" or "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play the Man City match".

Watch highlights of every Champions League game from 22:00 on Wednesday on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app.

There will also be a Champions League Match of the Day on BBC One on Wednesday, from 22:40 to 00:00.

How to follow the Champions League on the BBC

There's also Carabao Cup action happening on Tuesday - follow those games here

New this season: Live match updates

Fans of Premier League clubs can now get real-time scores live on their phone lock screen for every game.

Simply follow your favourite football teams on the BBC Sport app for updates throughout the 2026-27 season.

Find out more here

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New this season: Match of the Day Predictor

Simply predict the outcome of the six fixtures we've selected from across domestic and European competitions every week.

Players can join at any time, get involved with the latest round and start building a streak.

Read more about it here

You can find the predictor in the navigation bar at the top of this page, or on this link

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Unai Emery has been nominated for the 2026 Ballon d'Or Men's Coach of the Year award.

The Villa manager ended the club's 30-year wait for a trophy by winning the Europa League in May and delivered a fourth-place Premier League finish.

Johan Manzambi, who signed from Freiburg in the summer for a club record fee of just over £50m, has also been nominated for Men's Young Talent of the Year.

The ceremony will take place on Monday, 26 October 2026.

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Ollie Watkins' departure to Al-Hilal - which lurched between acrimonious and emotional - has left Aston Villa without their best attacking outlet.

Despite just one goal in his first 13 top-flight games last season, he ended up netting 16, leaving him on 91 Premier League goals - a club record.

Nicolas Jackson was brought in as Watkins' direct replacement and was a priority signing for Unai Emery, having worked together at Villarreal.

He has started Villa's past two games, the 1-0 defeat by Arsenal and Saturday's draw at Hull City.

Jackson scored 30 goals in 81 appearances for Chelsea, but the stats slightly favour Watkins across the period when they both played in the Premier League between 2023 and 2025.

In his first Premier League season, the 25-year-old scored 14 goals and contributed five assists, compared with Watkins' 19 goals and 13 assists.

In 2024-25, Jackson scored 10 goals to Watkins' 16 in 382 fewer minutes. He only had eight fewer shots, but his conversion rate of 13.2% was inferior to Watkins' 19.1%.

Yet Jackson's time at Bayern Munich - helping them win the Bundesliga last season - gave him a 21.1% conversion rate, scoring eight goals in 1,004 minutes of game time.

It is why Emery trusts Jackson, but the unknown is being able to gel a new core of players together, however high their potential.

Between them, Watkins and Morgan Rogers scored 46% of Villa's goals in the Premier League last season.

Rogers and Lucas Digne provided 12 assists, with Youri Tielemans adding four and Watkins three.

All four have left, so 18-year-old Ibrahim Mbaye and Chelsea loanee Garnacho will be expected to be the supply line, with Brian Madjo and Tammy Abraham supporting Jackson.

Read the full article here

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Tuesday's Champions League game against Club Brugge at Jan Breydelstadion (kick-off 17:45 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Emery confirmed Leon Gortezka has a knee injury and is "frustrated" to be sidelined until after the international break. Emery added: "Hopefully then he can get the consistency of training and playing so that we can add his experience."

• Johan Manzambi has not travelled to Belgium. Emery said: "He is progressing very good. I don't know if for Saturday [Nottingham Forest], or next week, he will be available if everything goes well."

• Joao Gomes is available to play against Brugge as his three-match suspension for violent conduct is only for domestic games.

• On the excitement of being back in the Champions League: "We are very motivated and very excited to play in this competition. Europe is something fantastic. We can continue feeling proud of how we achieved it."

• He said this is now a "a new and different chapter" after winning the Europa League last season because a lot of last season's "key players" have left.

• On the high player turnover: "We must try to adapt them as fast as possible, and we are going to try and get them adapted to play comfortably and with confidence."

Listen to more from Emery on BBC Sounds

Got a question about Villa? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

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Aston Villa's recent midfield signing Leon Goretzka posts on Instagram: "Dear Villans.

"First of all, thank you for the incredible welcome. After my first few days at this club, the feeling that I'm exactly where I'm meant to be has grown stronger with each passing day.

"Unfortunately, my body has reacted to the increased workload after my time away from the pitch. It's frustrating, but I need this short break now to come back at full strength.

"I'll use the coming days, including the international break, to recover fully and I'll be back ready to fight and give everything for you and for Villa. Can't wait to see you on the pitch soon"

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Hull City and Aston Villa.

Here are some of your comments:

Hull City fans

Gary: Excellent team performance, set up with a gameplan that worked almost to perfection. More shots on target than Villa. The game is not all about possession, it's about what you do with the ball when you have it. It won't work every week, but it will be fun watching Hull City win more games this season.

Surly: Another fine game and a very worthwhile result - 270 minutes of Premier League action in which the Tigers have not been breached.

Mark: Good point. Might have gone either way but handy getting Villa at this stage in their season.

Geoffrey: Three clean sheets is not bad for a no-hoper team. Great team performance after a shaky start. Hull City were the best team by a country mile in the last quarter.

Aston Villa fans

Arnie: Lacked creativity. Should have been Leon Goretzka instead of Ross Barkley starting. Why bother with Alejandro Garnacho when you've got £47m Ibrahim Mbaye warming the bench? Unai Emery needs to be more adventurous with his selections. Boring.

Arthur: We were very slow and seemed to lack creativity and looked almost scared to put crosses in or play behind the defenders. That said, if any of the Nicolas Jackson, John McGinn and Emi Buendia chances are put away, the narrative would be very different. Europe may give us the kick-start we need like last season. We will improve.

Paul: Early days in the season. Lacking that attacking flare but I think when the new signings start to click, we will see things flowing. In Unai, we trust.

Steve: Thought we had great movement and distribution. We looked stronger at the back with Tyrone Mings as well. Just need to find that goalscoring touch as we are making the right moves and creating chances. Not convinced about Jackson and think Tammy Abraham might deserve a run, especially against Coventry City.

Adwaidh Rajan
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa arrived at MKM Stadium still searching for their first shot on target, goal and point of the season - against a defence who were yet to concede this season.

So it was perhaps no surprise that Unai Emery's side were unable to find a way past them - but with some better finishing up front, three points could have been theirs.

Nicolas Jackson's movement caused problems for the Hull backline and Villa created enough openings while generating an expected goals (xG) of 1.74, compared to Hull's xG of 0.58.

Yet they still lacked the cutting edge Ollie Watkins would have provided in the past seasons.

The striker's departure to Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal in the final week of the transfer window was always going to leave a void and Villa continue to search for a new identity after the arrival of a host of new names.

They broke their transfer record twice to sign forward Johan Manzambi and Jackson while also buying Senegal winger Ibrahim Mbaye from Paris St-Germain for £47m on the deadline day.

Manzambi is yet to feature because of injury while Mbaye was an unused substitute on Saturday.

Villa will regret not capitalising on a good first hour - summed up by Emiliano Buendia's gilt-edged chance in the 54th minute when Zion Suzuki's superb 70-yard pass released George Hemmings, who cut the ball back for the Argentine to blaze over.

In the end, Emery's side were fortunate to escape with a point as Hull finished strongly and went closest to finding a winner.

And early signs are that Emery's new-look Villa will need time to reach the levels that took them to a fourth-placed finish and Europa League triumph last season.

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery, speaking to BBC's Match of the Day: "We planned this match the way we played. We were trying to dominate the match with our positioning, keeping possession of the ball as much as possible, and not conceding transitions, free-kicks or corners was our objective throughout the match.

"During the game, we tried to feel comfortable, create some good individual actions and be clinical. We created around five good chances to score. The next step for us is to continue building the team and try to correct a few things offensively. We are improving, but not enough.

"Overall, I can tell the fans and the players that I understand this is the way. In the last four years, with the success and performances we have had, we have had some days like today."

On new players taking time to gel: "The players who joined us need some adaption. Some our adapting quicker than others. In everything we are building, we must try and add the players who joined us in the direction we want."

Did you know?

• Aston Villa have recorded just one shot on target in their opening three games of a Premier League season - the lowest total on record by any side since 2003-04.

• Only Manchester City (31) are on a longer ongoing unbeaten run in the Premier League against newly promoted sides than Aston Villa, with the Villans unbeaten in all 22 matches under Unai Emery (won 15, drawn seven).

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Hull City's performance

What did you make of Aston Villa's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Monday for a selection of your replies.

There are seven games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Newcastle v Bournemouth (12:30)

• Brentford v Sunderland

• Brighton v Leeds

• Fulham v Crystal Palace

• Man City v Coventry - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Nottingham Forest v Tottenham - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Hull v Aston Villa (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 BST unless stated.

Follow all of the action and reaction here

How to follow the Premier League weekend across the BBC

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on your smart speaker. Just say "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play Nottingham Forest v Tottenham" or "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play the Aston Villa match", for example.

New this season: Live match updates

Fans of Premier League clubs can now get real-time scores live on their phone lock screen for every game.

Simply follow your favourite football teams on the BBC Sport app for updates throughout the 2026-27 season.

Find out more here

Image source, BBC Sport

New this season: Match of the Day Predictor

Simply predict the outcome of the six fixtures we've selected from across domestic and European competitions every week.

Players can join at any time, get involved with the latest round and start building a streak.

Read more about it here

You can find the predictor in the navigation bar at the top of this page, or on this link