Late goals put Villa in command of Champions League tie

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Two late goals, including a Marco Asensio penalty, gave Aston Villa a 3-1 win away to Club Brugge in Belgium in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday.

The scores remained level going into the closing stages after a Maxim De Cuyper strike for the hosts had cancelled out Leon Bailey’s early opener.

Club Brugge had been more than a match for their Premier League visitors at the Jan Breydelstadion, but Brandon Mechele’s 82nd-minute own goal restored Villa’s lead.

Asensio, on as a substitute, then converted a penalty in the 88th minute, his fifth goal in four games wrapping up the victory which puts the 1982 European Cup winners in a strong position to reach the quarter-finals.

If Unai Emery’s team can complete the job at Villa Park next Wednesday, their reward will be a mouthwatering quarter-final against either Paris Saint-Germain or Liverpool.

Villa qualified directly for this stage after finishing eighth in the league phase, but they had lost 1-0 in Bruges in early November.

That game was decided by a Hans Vanaken penalty after Tyrone Mings bizarrely picked the ball up in his own area.

England centre-back Mings will be pleased to have played a part in the third-minute goal which put Villa in front in that same penalty box.

He met a free-kick into the Brugge area with a header down for Bailey to score with a controlled first-time finish past goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.

Club Brugge have shown this season that they can compete at this level, notably dispatching last year’s Europa League winners Atalanta 5-2 on aggregate in the play-off round last month.

The hosts were soon level. Greek international Christos Tzolis collected the ball on the left and laid it back to De Cuyper, who arrived from full back to send a first-time shot beyond Emiliano Martinez and into the far corner.

The hosts almost went ahead. Martinez made a vital save to deny Chemsdine Talbi, to whom the ball broke inside the area.

Raphael Onyedika tried a powerful strike from range early in the second half, and Villa boss Unai Emery then sought to stir his subdued side by making a quadruple substitution just past the hour.

Rashford was among the players to come off, after he was quiet on the left wing in his first Champions League appearance since being sent off for Manchester United in a 4-3 defeat in Copenhagen in November 2023.

One of those coming on was Asensio, another of Villa’s winter signings, who started on the bench despite excellent recent form.

The on-loan PSG player almost struck on 68 minutes, meeting an assist from fellow substitute Jacob Ramsey only for Mignolet to save.

Club Brugge, the beaten European Cup finalists in 1978, also could have taken the lead. Captain Vanaken headed narrowly wide from a Tzolis cross and then set up the Greek winger for a great chance which he miscued.

Brugge did not deserve to end up losing by two goals, but the unfortunate Mechele turned a Morgan Rogers cross into his own net.

Tzolis then tripped up Matty Cash in the area, and Asensio blasted in the spot-kick before running away to celebrate in front of the travelling fans.

© Agence France-Presse

Photo: AVFCOfficial/X

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