Aston Villa breathed new life into their season with a hard-fought victory over Club Brugge in Belgium, surviving a dramatic second half to secure a crucial Champions League win.

Captain John McGinn opened the scoring before Hugo Vetlesen briefly brought Club Brugge level. But Emiliano Buendía restored Villa's advantage before Nicolas Jackson struck his first goal for the club to put the visitors firmly in control before half-time.

The drama was far from over, however. Aaron Wan-Bissaka was penalised for handball inside the box, allowing Nicolò Tresoldi to reduce the deficit from the penalty spot in the 61st minute. The Brugge forward then came agonisingly close to completing the comeback, only to see his effort crash against the post.

Aston Villa survived the late scare and held on for a valuable three points, with the result providing a major boost to a side looking to make an impact in Europe's elite competition.

The victory is particularly significant given Villa's summer rebuild. The Europa League winners lost six first-team players during the transfer window, including Morgan Rogers, who joined Chelsea in a deal worth £117 million.

Yet the influence of captain John McGinn continues to grow. The Scotland international's goal in Belgium took his European tally for Aston Villa to 12, making him the club's all-time leading scorer in European competition.

2026-27, Champions League

Club Brugge - Aston Villa 2:3 (1:3)
Goals: McGinn J., 11 (0:1); Vetlesen, 19 (1:1); Buendia, 22 (1:2); Jackson N., 43 (1:3); Tresoldi, 61 (penalty) (2:3)

Club Brugge: Sommer; Sabbe (Siquet, 46); Han-beom Lee; Seys; Mechele; Potts F. (Vermant, 86); Vetlesen (Tsawa, 77); Vanaken (Lemarechal, 77); Forbs; Virgili (Diakhon, 86); Tresoldi
Substitution: Siquet (from 46); Lemarechal (from 77); Tsawa (from 77); Diakhon (from 86); Vermant (from 86)
Bench: Jackers; Driessche; Spileers; Audoor; Mike; Vasovic
Yellow Cards: Vanaken 48; Virgili 62; Vermant 89

Aston Villa: Suzuki Z.; Lindelöf; Torres Pau; Maatsen I.; Kamara B. (Barkley, 68); Gomes João; Hemmings; McGinn J.; Wan-Bissaka (Bogarde L., 68); Buendia (Alysson Edward, 68); Jackson N. (Abraham T., 81)
Substitution: Barkley (from 68); Bogarde L. (from 68); Alysson Edward (from 68); Abraham T. (from 81)
Bench: Bizot; Wright J.; Mings; Ruggeri; Mbaye; Garnacho
Yellow Cards: Maatsen I. 9; McGinn J. 78; Gomes João 90