Matchday Highlights
Aston Villa extended their revival with a 2-0 win away to Feyenoord in the Europa League, keeping their climb alive as the group stage rolls on. The visitors needed a decisive second half to seal it, with Emiliano Buendía scoring in the 61st minute and captain John McGinn adding the second in the 79th.
Villa’s result moved them to six points, keeping them level on goal difference with Midtjylland and Dinamo Zagreb after those teams briefly topped the standings thanks to their own wins on the night against Nottingham Forest and Maccabi Tel Aviv respectively.
In the same group, Lille and Lyon kept the French flag flying, defeating Roma 1-0 and Salzburg 2-0 to join Villa at the top of the standings, with Porto also running riot in a 2-1 win over Red Star Belgrade later on Thursday.
Villa’s upturn follows a challenging spell that had produced six winless fixtures across all competitions, before their Europa League push began with a 1-0 win at Bologna and a 3-1 league victory over Fulham that hinted at a renewed vigor.
Feyenoord, under Robin van Persie, suffered a continental defeat for the second time this season as they chase a return to form in Europe.
- Two wins and a loss -
Lille’s win over Roma came thanks to a solid defensive display and a superb moment from their Turkish goalkeeper Berke Özer, who produced a standout performance including a penalty denial that featured multiple retakes after VAR checks and a handball review. The Lille winner arrived from a second-half strike by their Icelandic forward Hakim Haraldsson, sealing a 1-0 result at home.
Roma had opened their European campaign with a 2-1 victory at Nice, while Lille had earlier beaten Brann Bergen 2-1 in Norway. Lille ended a small league wobble with this international success, snapping a run of two losses to record a trio of wins across competitions.
Meanwhile, Lyon's visit to Salzburg ended 2-0 with goals from Uruguayan Martín Satriano (11) and Dutchman Robin Kluyvert (57); a Czech teammate Pavel Schulz had a late penalty saved as part of an eventful evening in this group. Nice were left to reflect on a second loss after falling to Fenerbahçe, with Turkish winger Kerem Aktürkoğlu scoring twice and Spaniard Kevin Carlos netting from a penalty in a 2-1 result that kept the drama high in Group standings.
Porto also produced a dramatic late show, with Rodrigo Mora grabbing the decisive 90th-minute strike to seal a 2-1 win for the Portuguese side against the Serbian visitors.
Across the night, Be1tis and other sides tucked in important results as the competition intensifies and the group stages near the halfway mark.
Punchlines: If football were a sniper, these teams would be shooting blanks one minute and hitting the bullseye the next. And remember: in Europe, late goals are nature’s way of reminding us that time really is money—and a good goalkeeper is basically a human highlight reel.
