Aston Villa will host Ligue 1 side Lille in the second leg of their UEFA Europa League Round of 16 tie in the 2025/26 season. Scottish star John McGinn stated that he and his team will approach this crucial match with the same fighting spirit.

Aston Villa secured a 1-0 victory over Lille in the first leg of their round of 16 tie, thanks to a second-half assist from Buendia to Watkins' goal, giving them confidence for the quarterfinals.

However, in the earlier Premier League match, Aston Villa lost 1-3 to Manchester United. Meanwhile, Lille's team, led by Genesio, secured a 2-1 away victory against Rennes in the earlier Ligue 1 match, successfully preparing for their upcoming challenge against Aston Villa.

Aston Villa captain McGinn said, "The first leg was very difficult, but now we are playing at home and have a chance to hold onto this result and win the game. We will strive for victory and try to score first, which is the goal of every game, but it is more important now because if we can get a two-goal advantage, we can be more comfortable in our pursuit of the quarterfinals."

“We know this is a very important game, and considering our recent results, it may be even more important. Everyone in the locker room understands the significance of this game. We are all very focused, and our goal is to accomplish our mission.”

McGinn emphasized, "We can't approach the game with a mindset of aiming for a draw. No matter what level we're at, if we're only trying to get a draw, our formation will become increasingly defensive, and our opponents will gradually take control of the game. We will strive for victory as we do in every game, and our goal in the first leg is to win."

"After the previous match against Paris Saint-Germain, we received a lot of praise for our performance, but in terms of the result, we still failed to complete the task. This is exactly what the coach has been emphasizing to us. He is a coach who is not satisfied with the finish line, but wants to cross it. We do not want to be a mediocre team, nor do we want to be a team that is considered to have performed reasonably well. We hope to produce tangible results."

In addition, McGinn said, "We know there are expectations for us, and we know we are considered one of the favorites. We must prove that with our performance and results, which stems from our performance in domestic and European competitions over the past few years."

“At certain stages, we didn’t do a good enough job of controlling this type of game, and we didn’t handle it well. But we have learned from it and can turn it into an advantage to give ourselves the best chance to move forward.”

Image source: Internet