Lee Hendrie delivers instant verdict on Aston Villa's Champions League win at Young Boys tonight

09/17/2024 03:00 PM

Aston Villa are up and running in the Champions League thanks to a 3-0 win over Young Boys in Bern.

The Villans were among the first teams to take part in the competition under the new format, and they did so in style.

Villa’s opener – their first top-tier European goal in 41 years – came courtesy of Youri Tielemans, who fired in at the far post on 27 minutes.

The Villans’ training-ground work paid off as Lucas Digne played the corner short to John McGinn, who looped the ball deep for Tielemans to strike home.

Unai Emery’s charges then added a second through Jacob Ramsey, who applied the finishing touch in the 38th minute after chaotic scenes in the box.

Villa could have been three up by the break, but Ollie Watkins’ fierce top-corner effort was ruled out due to a contentious handball decision.

Jhon Duran had the ball in the back of the net on 78 minutes, but this was also ruled out, though in this case there were no doubts about Amadou Onana’s handball.

Nonetheless, Villa did finally get their third goal of the night, Onana firing from distance into the bottom corner of the hosts’ net in the 87th minute.

Lee Hendrie hails ‘absolutely brilliant’ Aston Villa display

All in all, it was a superb performance from Villa, and B6 cult hero Lee Hendrie loved what he saw from the claret-and-blue side.

He told Sky Sports News: “That was absolutely brilliant! Even in the first half, they had good chances. It could have been five or six.

“There’s a really good feeling around Villa at the moment. A brilliant performance.”

What next for Aston Villa?

Villa are next in action on Saturday 21 September, with a West Midlands derby on the cards.

Emery’s charges host Wolverhampton Wanderers in a 3pm Premier League kick-off at Villa Park.