Aston Villa finally scored as they kicked off their Champions League journey with a 3-2 win over Club Brugge on Tuesday.
Unai Emery’s team has had a rough time in the Premier League after losing many stars from their Europa League-winning squad during a difficult summer.
They went goalless in the league and had only one shot on target in their first three matches.
But Villa’s first game in the league phase of Europe’s top club tournament brought some much-needed joy as they won for the first time this season.
In heavy rain at the Jan Breydel Stadium, John McGinn gave Villa the lead early with their first goal this season.
Hugo Vetlesen equalised soon after, but Emiliano Buendia put the visitors back in front before Nicolas Jackson’s first goal for Villa made it 3-1 just before half-time.
Nicolo Tresoldi’s penalty after the break made things tense, but Villa held on.
Villa can now focus on getting their first league win against Nottingham Forest this weekend before their Champions League match against Fenerbahce in October.
Villa won the Europa League last season, ending a 30-year wait for a trophy. But the team that made history by beating Freiburg in Istanbul has been broken up in just a few months.
Morgan Rogers, Ollie Watkins, Youri Tielemans, Emiliano Martinez, Lucas Digne, and Ezri Konsa were all sold during a busy summer.
The rebuild, forced by Villa’s need to stick to football’s financial rules, is a big test for Emery. This match showed he might be finding answers.
Villa beat Brugge 6-0 in the Champions League last 16 in 2025 and once again they proved too strong for the Belgian side.
After three weeks without scoring, Villa netted their first goal of the season in the 11th minute.
Pau Torres made a great run and pass to McGinn, who curled a lovely shot past Yann Sommer.
George Hemmings almost made it 2-0 moments later, but Sommer saved the 19-year-old’s shot.
Hemmings wasted another chance when he shot wide with the goal open.
Brugge took advantage of those misses to equalise in the 18th minute.
With a quick burst from Jan Virgili, Vetlesen took his chance and struck past Zion Suzuki into the bottom corner.
But Villa started to click in attack and regained the lead three minutes later.
Joao Gomes found Buendia, whose shot left Sommer with no chance.
With both teams attacking, Jackson scored Villa’s third in the 43rd minute.
Jackson, who struggled during his time at Chelsea, showed great composure to hold off two Brugge defenders and evade Sommer before tapping into an empty net.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka gave Brugge a chance back into the game in the 61st minute when he handled Joaquin Seys’s cross, leading to a penalty that Tresoldi coolly scored past Suzuki.
Villa faced pressure as Brugge chased an equaliser.
They nearly lost their lead when Suzuki fumbled Tresoldi’s header onto the post.
Tresoldi should have equalised in stoppage time, but his header went straight into Suzuki’s hands, giving Emery a much-needed sigh of relief.
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