Hundreds of Aston Villa’s fans rejoiced an hour before the commencement of the match against Young Boys as the Champions League anthem played, which set the tone for a beautiful evening.
The mood did not stop but continued as the club defeated the Swiss side Young Boys as they returned to their first European game in 41 years.
An academy graduate from the Villa side, Jacob Ramsey, made it to the scoresheet as the supporters echoed the name of the 1982 European Cup winner and another homegrown winner, Gary Shaw.
Two Belgium players, Youri Tielemans and Amadou Onana, scored other goals to accompany the first from Ramsey, as Onana scored his third goal since Aston Villa acquired him at £50m from Everton.
The match had its own drama as substitute Jhon Durán was booked for inciting Young Boys fans after thinking he’d made it 3-0. His goal was canceled because of a handball, as was Ollie Watkins’ earlier effort. Onana then scored the last goal that sealed Villa’s victory with a stunning 25-yard shot.
Tielemans opened the scoring with a well-calculated execution that delighted Austin MacPhee, Aston Villa’s coach. Villa took possession after Tielemans’ goal, while Ramsey did not miss the opportunity to turn a defensive error into a goal. The match ended in a 3-0 win against the Young Boys.