The Club Brugge fans who mocked Tyrone Mings for most of the evening will probably keep quiet when their side pitch up at Villa Park next week.
Last time he played at this stadium, Mings picked up the ball inside his own penalty area and effectively handed Brugge victory in the league phase in November. Four months later, he made two decisive contributions to put Aston Villa on the brink of the Champions League quarter-finals.
With the game barely two minutes old, Mings’ header across goal created the opener for Leon Bailey. And then with the score at 1-1 and Brugge pushing for a second, the England international produced a breathtaking interception to stop Hans Vanaken’s header beating Emi Martinez. In the final 10 minutes, Brandon Mechele’s own-goal and a penalty from Marco Asensio sealed it for Villa.
Mings may have his detractors but it is difficult to question his character. His every touch taunted, Mings nonetheless stood up and gave Villa the sort of leadership they have lacked so often this season. Barring a collapse next Wednesday, Villa can look forward to a quarter-final tie against Paris Saint-Germain or Liverpool.
Villa boss Unai Emery used his substitutes to great effect, as Asensio scored his fifth goal since joining on loan and Matty Cash won the spot-kick. From the start, however, Emery left out Asensio and went with a three-man combination of Bailey, Morgan Rogers and Marcus Rashford behind Ollie Watkins. He also opted for Axel Disasi at right-back, ahead of specialist full-back Matty Cash.
In a raucous atmosphere, the home crowd had not forgotten what happened last November, when Mings’ howler handed victory to the Belgians. When the Villa defender’s name was announced, the Brugge fans cheered. They booed as loudly when they heard the name of Youri Tielemans, who used to play for Brugge’s great rivals Anderlecht.
Marco Asensio converted a late penalty kick to seal Aston Villa’s 3-1 win away at Club Brugge
That penalty came shortly after Brugge defender Brandon Mechele had scored an own goal
Villa made a dream start in northwest Belgium when Leon Bailey scored after just 134 seconds
It took Villa less than three minutes to silence them, and Tielemans and Mings were at the heart of it. Mings jumped at the far post to head Tielemans’ free-kick back across goal, where Bailey arrived at just the right time to sweep it beyond Simon Mignolet from 12 yards. The perfect start.
Stationed wide on the left, Rashford was largely well shackled by Chemsdine Talbi and Kyriani Sabbe, apart from in the ninth minute when he burst in off the flank, collected the return pass from Bailey and saw his effort from a tight angled blocked by Brandon Mechele.
That proved a vital intervention as Brugge were level within three minutes, and what a goal it was.
Ardon Jashari was allowed to turn on the halfway line and find Christos Tzolis with a perfect cross-field pass. The Greek winger teased Disasi before slipping the ball back inside. Maxim De Cuyper’s underlapping run had not been followed properly and the left-back finished beautifully, guiding his first-time shot into the far corner.
Though Brugge shaded the first half and had the edge on Villa in midfield, the visitors were usually able to keep them at arm’s length. The sole scary moment after the goal happened when Mings and Hans Vanaken contested a cross and the ball broke to Talbi. His strike was true but Emi Martinez has made a career from stopping shots like these and the Argentine kept it out impressively.
Martinez’s next save was more straightforward, as he moved to his left early in the second half to catch a piledriver from the excellent Raphael Onyedika that was arrowing towards the the top corner.
Bailey hit the net with a sweet left-footed half volley to score his first Champions League goal
It was 1-1 after just 12 minutes when Club Brugge left back Maxim De Cuyper (left) equalised
A stunning clearance by Tyrone Mings prevented Brugge from going 2-1 up in the second half
Marcus Rashford made the third start of his Villa career, before being subbed off on 64 minutes
Some of Brugge’s one and two-touch passing was delightful yet in Ferran Jutgla, they have a centre-forward not quite on the same wavelength as their creative players. Near the hour mark Jashari and Vanaken combined to release the former Barcelona player, only for Jutgla to take a heavy touch and let in Mings.
By now Emery had seen enough. The Villa boss changed nearly half of his outfield players at the same time, sending on Asensio, Cash, Jacob Ramsey and Boubacar Kamara for Rashford, Bailey, Disasi and John McGinn.
And the subs nearly made an immediate impression. Asensio met Ramsey’s cross with a rising drive that Mignolet could only parry and Cash volleyed it wildly over.
Then Vanaken came even closer when he headed De Cuyper’s cross beyond Martinez and Mings just somehow managed to retrieve the situation. At full stretch, the centre-back made the slightest contact on the header and divert it wide, and Villa earned a goal-kick even though a corner should have been given. Villa were wobbling a little now and Tzolis blasted into the home fans from an ideal position.
Then Villa had the slice of luck they needed when the lively Ramsey broke in from the left and found Kamara. The Frenchman’s pass caught De Cuyper flat-footed and in trying to cut out Rogers’ dangerous cross, the sliding Mechele could only divert it past Mignolet.
The night became even better for Villa soon afterwards as Cash was fouled by Tzolis and Asensio slammed the penalty into Mignolet’s bottom-right corner.
