News Focus
- Aston Villa beat SC Freiburg 3-0 to win the Europa League trophy in Istanbul on Wednesday night
- Youri Tielemans, Morgan Rogers and Emiliano Buendía all earned top marks of 8/10 for the English side
- Freiburg’s Manzambi provided the team’s main attacking threat despite the heavy defeat
- Victor Lindelöf received Villa’s lowest starting rating with 4/10 after a tough evening
- Substitutes Lucas Höler and Max Rosenfelder struggled to change the game for the Bundesliga outfit
Aston Villa claimed European glory with a commanding 3-0 victory over SC Freiburg in the Europa League final. The Premier League side produced a clinical display in Istanbul to leave the German club empty-handed on Wednesday evening.
Julian Schuster’s team struggled to find their rhythm against the English opponents. Their best moments came through Manzambi, who looked dangerous with the ball during the opening half. The attacker tried to create openings for his side, though he could have worked harder to prevent Buendía from scoring Villa’s second goal.
The winning side’s goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez earned a rating of six, matching centre-backs Ezri Konsa and Pau Torres. Full-backs Matty Cash and Lucas Digne also received six points each for their defensive work. However, Victor Lindelöf had a difficult match in the middle of the park, receiving only four points.
Youri Tielemans stood out as Villa’s star performer with an eight-point rating. He shared this top mark with forwards Morgan Rogers and Emiliano Buendía. Club captain Jack McGinn and striker Ollie Watkins both secured seven points for their contributions.
From the substitutes’ bench, Amadou Onana managed five points after coming on. Ian Maatsen, Jadon Sancho, Tyrone Mings and Douglas Luiz did not spend enough minutes on the pitch to receive scores.
For the Bundesliga side, Lucas Höler scored four points from the bench, while Max Rosenfelder earned five. Fellow replacements Derry Scherhant, Jordy Makengo and Christian Günter did not feature long enough for ratings.