Aston Villa took hold of their Champions League last-16 tie with a 3-1 victory away at Club Brugge on Tuesday.
An electric start saw Leon Bailey open the scoring inside the opening three minutes, but Brugge did not take long to respond as the in-demand Maxim De Cuyper tied things up ten minutes later. That goal changed the tide of the game, with the hosts enjoying the majority of possession throughout.
Villa had to work incredibly hard over the remainder of the game and got their reward in the 82nd minute when Brandon Mechele deflected a Morgan Rogers cross beyond his own goalkeeper, and the visitors were presented with the chance to put one foot in the next round when Christos Tzolis tripped Matty Cash in the box five minutes later.
Marco Asensio stepped up and, despite slipping as he struck the ball, fired into Simon Mignolet's bottom corner to seal a big win for Unai Emery's side.
Aston Villa player ratings (4-2-3-1)
Player | Rating |
|---|---|
GK: Emiliano Martinez | 6.4/10 |
RB: Axel Disasi | 7.4/10 |
CB: Ezri Konsa | 7.0/10 |
CB: Tyrone Mings | 7.3/10 |
LB: Lucas Digne | 7.3/10 |
DM: John McGinn | 6.4/10 |
DM: Youri Tielemans | 7.3/10 |
RM: Leon Bailey | 7.7/10 |
AM: Morgan Rogers | 6.9/10 |
LM: Marcus Rashford | 6.6/10 |
ST: Ollie Watkins | 6.4/10 |
SUB: Matty Cash (64' for Disasi) | 6.6/10 |
SUB: Boubacar Kamara (64' for Bailey) | 6.3/10 |
SUB: Jacob Ramsey (64' for McGinn) | 6.8/10 |
SUB: Marco Asensio (64' for Rashford) | 7.5/10 |
SUB: Lamare Bogarde (90' for Watkins) | N/A |
Subs not used: Oliwier Zych (GK), Robin Olsen (GK), Ian Maatsen, Pau Torres
Player of the match - Maxin De Cuyper (Club Brugge)
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