Villa boast a 100% record in the competition.
Aston Villa have the sole intention of maintaining their 100% start to the league phase of the new Champions League format when they take on Club Brugge on Wednesday.
It’s been a memorable start to Villa’s continental campaign, with an unforgettable triumph over Bayern Munich on Matchday 2 complementing professional victories over Young Boys and Bologna.
Unai Emery’s Villans next take on a Brugge side that sit second in the Belgian Pro League but 26th in the league phase table having been beaten by Borussia Dortmund and Milan. Their sole victory arrived against Austrian champions Sturm Graz away from home.
The hosts head into Wednesday’s bout off the back of a three-game winning run, while Villa have lost two on the bounce. After exiting the Carabao Cup at the hands of Crystal Palace last week, Villa were put to the sword by a rampant Tottenham Hotspur in the second half on Sunday, eventually losing 4-1 despite taking a first-half lead.
Morgan Rogers was poleaxed by Cristian Romero on Sunday and subsequently withdrawn, but the Villa attacker didn’t seem too bothered by the knock he sustained and should be available on Wednesday.
Matty Cash also succumbed to injury at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and is less likely to feature. His absence will almost certainly draw Ezri Konsa away from the centre of Villa’s backline and allow Diego Carlos to come in.
Boubacar Kamara and Tyrone Mings are in contention for starts, but Emery cannot call upon Ross Barkley until after the international break due to injury.
Jhon Duran, who scored in Villa’s previous two Champions League outings, will be hoping for a starting berth over Ollie Watkins up top.
