Aston Villa marked their return to European football’s top club competition after a 41-year absence with a thoroughly deserved victory over Swiss champions Young Boys.
Unai Emery’s team took time to settle on the artificial surface in Bern but went in front through Youri Tielemans, who finished off a well-worked corner routine with a driven finish into the far corner.
Villa were gifted a second by some calamitous defending from the home side, with Ollie Watkins intercepting Mohamed Ali Camara’s pass towards goalkeeper David von Ballmoos and Jacob Ramsey firing in off the inside of the post.
The hosts were spared further punishment before half-time by the video assistant referee (VAR), who disallowed Watkins’ powerful effort for handball.
Silvere Ganvoula and Filip Ugrinic forced saves out of Emi Martinez in the second half and substitute Jhon Duran had a left-footed finish ruled out for handball against Amadou Onana, but the Belgian midfielder’s low effort put the seal on a comfortable evening for Emery’s side.
The visitors wore black armbands in Switzerland in memory of former striker and 1982 European Cup winner Gary Shaw, who passed away on Monday from injuries sustained in a heavy fall.
An image of Shaw was displayed on the big screen before kick-off, with both sets of fans taking part in a period of applause.
