Aston Villa defeated Viking 3-1 in their UEFA Champions League match on Wednesday. The result lifts them to second place in the 36-team table with nine points from three games and a strong goal difference. Viking remain 33rd with just one point after three matches.
OptaJoe noted that Aston Villa have now recorded 20 UEFA Champions League wins in only their 30th match, the second-quickest team to reach that mark behind Real Madrid.
The contest saw Aston Villa control large spells yet concede a goal that kept Viking in contention until the final stages. Villa's attacking threat proved decisive once more, allowing them to pull clear despite the visitors' occasional threat on the counter. The outcome reflected the gap in current European experience between the sides.
Aston Villa entered the fixture on strong recent form of WWWDW, featuring wins over Newcastle, Fenerbahçe and Sevilla alongside a draw with Brentford. Viking arrived with a record of LWDWW that included a draw against Bayern München and victories in domestic fixtures.
This result extended Aston Villa's unbeaten European run and maintained their perfect start to the league phase. For Viking the loss reversed their recent momentum, leaving them with just one point from three games and exposing the challenge of competing at this level.
Youri Tielemans stated the performance was “NOT acceptable. Too bad from us”. The victory keeps Aston Villa well placed for the next phase while Viking face an urgent need to improve results if they are to climb the standings.