Aston Villa secured a 1-0 victory over Ligue 1 side Lille in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League Round of 16 tie, thanks to a goal from Watkins. Emery stated that the match would have been much more difficult if the team hadn't taken it seriously, and he hoped more players would contribute.

In the 61st minute of the second half, Konsa made a long pass, Buendia headed the ball across, and Watkins then headed it into the net, giving Aston Villa a 1-0 lead.

Ultimately, Aston Villa defeated Lille 1-0 away from home, gaining a slight advantage in advancing to the quarterfinals.

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery said, "I want to thank our fans, more than 2,500 of whom came to support us. It's very important that they followed the team and cheered us on all the way. They really helped the team in many ways, and we really felt it during the game."

“We have great respect for this competition because we know how difficult every game is, especially away games in Europe, particularly for English teams. Just like in the Champions League before, you can see how much of a challenge they faced. The Premier League is a very strong league, and when we play away games in other countries, the challenges are often even greater.”

Emery pointed out, "We played very seriously, maintained good organization throughout the game, tried to stay solid defensively, and wanted to feel relaxed while defending. At the same time, we looked for opportunities through transitions and tried to control the game when we had possession, and we did just that."

“We didn’t create many chances, but we did have some very clear scoring opportunities. I’m pleased with how the players executed the game plan and their understanding and respect for the difficulty of the game, because if we’re not serious, the game can become very difficult.”

Furthermore, Aston Villa will travel to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the next round of the Premier League. Next week, Emery's team will host Lille again at home.

Emery also emphasized, "We still need to rely on the individual abilities of our players to contribute more to the team, both individually and collectively. We need more players to score goals, like Watkins. We also need Morgan Rodgers, Sancho, Lyon Bailey, Buendia, and the midfielders to all contribute."

"Everyone in the locker room knows that this is only the first leg. 1-0 is a good result, but we still have 90 minutes to play. We must respect our opponents as much as we did today and play well in the second leg."

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