Raphael Onyedika and his Club Brugge teammates arrived at Villa Park with a mountain to climb, needing to overturn a 3-1 first-leg deficit to keep their UEFA Champions League dream alive.
But their hopes suffered a major blow within the opening 20 minutes when Kyriani Sabbe saw red, leaving the Belgian side to battle with 10 men for the rest of the match, Footballrover reports.
Despite the setback, Brugge fought valiantly, carving out chances that could have turned the tie in their favor.
Captain Hans Vanaken came close to marking his 50th UCL appearance with an early goal, but his header whisked just past the post.
Chemsdine Talbi also tested Emiliano Martínez with a powerful strike, but the Argentine shot-stopper was up to the task.
Raphael Onyedika battles, but Club Brugge falls short
Villa remained patient, managing their lead until Unai Emery introduced Marco Asensio and Leon Bailey at halftime—a decision that proved decisive.
Just five minutes after coming on, Asensio capitalised on Bailey’s well-timed pass to smash home his sixth goal in five games.
That goal opened the floodgates. Within 15 minutes, Ian Maatsen doubled the lead after a clever cutback from Morgan Rogers.
Asensio then sealed his brace, tapping in from Marcus Rashford’s low cross to make it 3-0 on the night and 6-1 on aggregate.
Club Brugge’s UCL journey ends with pride
This defeat means Club Brugge’s UCL journey stops short of the quarter-finals, denying them a historic breakthrough.
Despite the disappointment, their campaign had its moments of brilliance. As Villa march on to face PSG, Brugge will reflect on what might have been.
As the club summed it up on social media: “Our amazing Champions League journey ends here.”
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