John Townley’s Aston Villa player ratings after Unai Emery’s side defeat FC Basel in Switzerland
21:57, 11 Dec 2025Updated 22:00, 11 Dec 2025
Aston Villa have now won five of their six Europa League matches this season(Image: James Marsh/Shutterstock)
Aston Villa earned their eighth win in a row by beating FC Basel 2-1 in the Europa League at St. Jakob-Park.
Evann Guessand opened the scoring early in the first half, but Villa were pegged back by Flavius Daniliuc before Youri Tielemans came off the bench to restore the lead.
The victory is Villa’s fifth from six league phase matches, following previous wins over Bologna, Feyenoord, Maccabi Tel Aviv and BSC Young Boys.
Basel had won each of their last seven home Europa League games – previously the longest ongoing home winning run in the competition – and were unbeaten in 10 on home soil since a 2-1 defeat to Belenenses in October 2015.
Villa started the better of the two sides, despite Marco Bizot being the first goalkeeper called into action, and they forced an advantage in the 12th minute.
Matty Cash delivered a corner into the box and, as Basel struggled to clear their lines, Guessand steered the ball past Marwin Hitz, scoring his second goal for the club since joining in the summer.
On the half-hour mark, Basel thought they had equalised through Leo Leroy, who flashed the ball past Bizot from inside the box, but VAR ruled the goal out for an offside in the build-up.
Villa, however, did not heed that warning, as Daniliuc levelled the game shortly afterwards by turning in Xherdan Shaqiri’s cross from the left.
Unai Emery turned to the creativity of Youri Tielemans at half-time, as Villa had lost the control they enjoyed in the first 25 minutes. Although they scored in the first half, Villa’s ‘expected goals’ value before the break was just 0.19.
The Belgian made an instant impact after coming on, sweeping the ball past Hitz from the edge of the box to restore Villa’s lead.
Ollie Watkins, Morgan Rogers and Boubacar Kamara were all introduced in the 65th minute, before John McGinn also came on to help secure the result in the final stages.
Hosts Basel were knocking on the door late on, but Villa stood up to everything Ludovic Magnin’s side threw at them.
Emery would have been particularly proud of that resilience, especially considering how his team surrendered a lead at Go Ahead Eagles back in October.
That 2-1 defeat in Deventer is one of only two losses Villa have suffered in their last 16 matches – remarkably, they have won 14 in that time.
Villa have also now won nine of their last 11 major European matches, with each victory coming in 2025 – their most ever in a single calendar year in European competition.
Emery’s side return to Premier League action on Sunday when they take on West Ham United at the London Stadium, with kick-off at 2pm.
Player ratings
Marco Bizot Bizot made his third appearance in the Europa League this season as Emi Martinez was absent from the squad. He was beaten by Daniliuc after Shaqiri clipped the ball into the box but came off his line well in the 41st minute to clear the danger. 6
Matty Cash Cash hadn’t started any of Villa’s last three European games before tonight, but Emery picked him ahead of Andres Garcia. He was replaced at half-time. 6
Ezri Konsa Konsa continued at the heart of Villa’s defence and wore the captain’s armband too. 7
Victor Lindelof Lindelof came into the starting XI as Pau Torres didn’t travel with his teammates. The experienced Swedish defender has covered multiple roles since joining on a free transfer in the summer and is proving a useful addition. Completed the most passes in the game, misplaced only three of the 85 he attempted. 7
Lucas Digne Digne made his first Europa League start of the campaign as Ian Maatsen had played from the off against both Brighton and Arsenal in the last two games. He linked well with Sancho down the left and forced a couple of corners in the early stages of the game. 7
Lamare Bogarde Bogarde came in for Boubacar Kamara in the double pivot. He’s come of age in this Villa team now, so Emery trusts him more, even to start away in Europe. The 21-year-old moved to right-back for the second half as Cash came off for Tielemans. Better in the second half. 7
Amadou Onana Onana was only one of three players to keep their place in the starting side. He covered ground well and broke up play effectively before making way for Kamara just after the hour mark. 7
Evann Guessand Guessand returned to action this evening after not being fit enough to feature against Arsenal last weekend and marked it by scoring his second goal of the campaign. Apart from scoring, however, he struggled and laboured in possession on the right wing. 6
Emi Buendia Fresh from scoring with the last kick of the game against Arsenal, Buendia played from the off in Basel but cut a frustrated figure in the first half. He didn’t get much of a touch in the first 20 minutes of the second period either. 5
Jadon Sancho Sancho made his fourth consecutive start in the Europa League. He took possession in tight spaces and used the ball effectively in the first half, with most of Villa’s early attacks going down his left flank. 6
Donyell Malen Malen led the line for the first hour, just as he did against Maccabi Tel Aviv and BSC Young Boys. He had three touches in the penalty box in the first period but didn’t manage to get a shot at goal. His role changed slightly following Watkins’ introduction. 6
SUBS
Youri Tielemans (for Cash, 46’): The Belgian put Villa back in the lead shortly after coming off the bench at the start of the second half. Top player. 8
Ollie Watkins (for Sancho, 64’): Watkins did plenty of running but didn’t get a real sight of goal after coming on. 5
Morgan Rogers (for Buendia, 64’): Rogers wasn’t particularly involved following his introduction. 5
Boubacar Kamara (for Onana, 64’): Helped shore things up after coming on. 6
John McGinn (for Malen, 79’): N/A
John McGinn (for Malen, 79’): N/A
Subs not used: Oakley, Wright, Maatsen, Garcia, Hemmings.
GOALS
FC Basel: Daniliuc (34′)
Aston Villa: Guessand (12′), Tielemans (53′)
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