Aston Villa edge Club Brugge 3-2 as Nicolas Jackson scores first goal
Aston Villa opened their 2026-27 Champions League league-phase campaign with a 3-2 away win over Club Brugge, surviving a tense second half at the Jan Breydel Stadium after Nicolas Jackson scored his first competitive goal for the club.
Villa strike three before the break
Unai Emery’s side made an aggressive start in Belgium and had built a two-goal interval advantage despite an early Brugge response.
- John McGinn put Villa ahead in the 11th minute.
- Club Brugge replied eight minutes later, with Hugo Vetlesen finishing after Jan Virgili created the opening.
- Emiliano Buendia restored the visitors’ lead on 22 minutes, converting João Gomes’ assist.
- Jackson then made it 3-1 in the 43rd minute, marking his first official Villa strike after arriving in the summer.
Penalty brings Brugge back into the contest
Brugge pressed hard after the restart and were handed a route back when Aaron Wan-Bissaka was penalised for handball.
Joaquin Seys had met a header from Nicolo Tresoldi before trying to send the ball back into the area. His cross hit Wan-Bissaka’s arm, and the referee awarded a spot-kick under the Champions League handball rules.
Tresoldi took the penalty in the 59th minute and sent goalkeeper Zion Suzuki the wrong way to reduce the deficit to one.
What happens next
Villa held out through sustained late Brugge pressure to secure three points on the opening matchday.
- Villa return to Premier League action against Nottingham Forest.
- Club Brugge resume Belgian Pro League duty against Antwerp as they seek an immediate response to the European loss.
