In the second leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Europa League Round of 16, Aston Villa defeated Lille 2-0 at home. With this victory, they advanced to the quarterfinals with a 3-0 aggregate score.

Aston Villa and Lille failed to score in the first half. Their only threatening attack came in the 42nd minute when John McGinn's corner kick from the right was headed on by Amadou Onana, but was saved by Belko Ozer.

After the break, the deadlock was broken in the 54th minute by Aston Villa: Nabil Bentalib's free kick was saved by Emiliano Martinez, who quickly launched a counter-attack. With Jaden Sancho assisting an unmarked McGinn who slotted home, Aston Villa took a 1-0 lead.

After that, both sides exchanged attacks. In the 62nd minute, Morgan Rodgers played a through ball forward, and Ollie Watkins' shot hit the left post. In the 64th minute, Bentalib's cross attempted to connect with Olivier Giroud but was caught by Emiliano. In the 65th minute, Douglas Luiz's long pass from the back found Sancho on the right wing, but Sancho's shot after breaking into the penalty area was denied by the post. In the 76th minute, Nathan Neuer passed the ball to the right wing from the edge of the penalty area, and Noah Edjuma's curling shot was saved by Emiliano.

In the 85th minute, Watkins broke into the right side of the penalty area and selflessly passed the ball across, allowing Leon Bailey to slot it home and seal the victory. At the final whistle, Aston Villa secured a resounding 2-0 win at home.

Image source: Internet/Aston Villa official website