PLAYER RATINGS | Aston Villa 2-0 Lille: Les Dogues eliminated in limp display
UEFA Europa League, Round of 16 second leg, 19/03/2026After winning the first leg 1-0, Aston Villa completed the job and eliminated Lille OSC from the UEFA Europa League round of 16 in a 2-0 win at Vi...
PLAYER RATINGS | Aston Villa 2-0 Lille: Les Dogues eliminated in limp display UEFA Europa League, Round of 16 second leg, 19/03/2026 After winning the first leg 1-0, Aston Villa completed the job and eliminated Lille OSC from the UEFA Europa League round of 16 in a 2-0 win at Villa Park. The Match The first half was played at a strange tempo. Villa already held the lead after the first leg and didn’t need to push their advantage, while Lille were wary of their hosts’ threat in transition and were wary of letting the game become stretched.
The result was that the game felt like a late-season affair between two midtable teams with nothing to play for. Lille were far too cautious and unable to put too much pressure on Villa, with Giroud leading the press. It took until the 42nd minute before the first shot on target was registered between either side.
Amadou Onana was found in the box off a corner and headed goalwards. His shot was hit with pace, but Berke Özer was more than a match for it. There was more life from Lille immediately after the restart when Thomas Meunier searched for Giroud in the box.
The retired France international ducked underneath the cross, and the danger was shepherded out for a corner. Lille kept up the pressure, but were sucker punched for their efforts in the 54th minute. Nabil Bentaleb fired at Emiliano Martínez’s goal from a free kick, forcing a diving save from the Villa keeper.