ASTON VILLA took a big step towards securing a place in the last eight of the UEFA Europa League with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Basel. This was only their second win in seven away games in the competition. Despite Basel's inconsistent performance, Villa continued to show that they are serious contenders in the competition.
Villa started strongly and quickly took the lead when a loose ball in the penalty area fell to Evann Guessand, who scored with confidence. Basel tried to equalise and almost did so through Leo Leroy, but the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside. They then equalised when Flavius Daniliuc headed in a free kick from Xherdan Shaqiri.
At half-time, manager Unai Emery made a crucial change by bringing on Youri Tielemans, and it paid off immediately. The Belgian midfielder scored the final goal from the edge of the box after a fine pass from Emi Buendía. Villa controlled the second half well, playing more cautiously and preventing Basel from creating chances. Although Jadon Sancho was substituted and looked confused, the team maintained their composure.
Basel continued to push for an equaliser, and came close to scoring when Albian Ajeti headed wide. But Villa won their eighth consecutive competitive match. The victory also ended Basel's longest home unbeaten run in the Europa League, which had lasted since October 2015, and cemented Villa's place as one of the competition's top sides.