Aston Villa won at home for the first time this season and did so in considerable style, beating Fenerbahce 6-0 at Villa Park for the biggest European victory in the club’s history. Unai Emery’s new-look attack did the damage in front of a three-quarters full ground, with the North Stand demolished and the Holte End enjoying a night that quickly turned into a pantomime of heroes and villains.
Johan Manzambi broke the deadlock, marking his 21st birthday with a deflected shot in the 12th minute — his second goal for the club. The opener came after a short corner, with Mattéo Guendouzi inadvertently heading on John McGinn’s cross.
Nicolas Jackson then effectively settled the contest with two more goals before half-time. The first, just after the half-hour mark, came from collecting Boubacar Kamara’s pass and striking home cleanly from the edge of the penalty area; the second, six minutes before the interval, was a repeat of the trick. Jackson now has five goals for Emery’s side since signing from Chelsea for £65m in the summer.
Ross Barkley made it a night to remember as well, scoring twice. His first came from the penalty spot midway through the second half after Manzambi was tripped by Ismail Yuksek, and his second — a deflected effort — swiftly followed. Ibrahim Mbaye had produced a lively, pacy showing on the left wing and sprinted from one penalty area to the other after a Fenerbahce corner, exchanging a one-two with Jackson before seeing his shot well saved, while Tammy Abraham turned in Alysson’s cross for the sixth. At the other end, Zion Suzuki saved well twice from Vedat Muriqi and had to tip over a fierce Oguz Aydin shot five minutes from time, having earlier seen Aydin shoot against the Villa bar. Prince William was among those cheering on from the stands.
Much of the night’s noise was reserved for Mason Greenwood, who was playing his first game in England in nearly five years. Every touch was booed, and he was jeered again when substituted, with chants of “Greenwood, Greenwood, what’s the score” echoing around Villa Park alongside renditions of a less salubrious nature. Greenwood was charged in 2022 with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm; the Crown Prosecution Service discontinued the case in February 2023 after key witnesses withdrew their involvement and new material came to light, and the player had denied the charges. His last appearance in this country had been for Manchester United in a 1-0 win against West Ham in January 2022, and he had played for Marseille in a friendly against Villa 15 months ago, when he allegedly spat at Amadou Onana and had a spat with Tyrone Mings.
The victory was Villa’s 11th successive home win in European competition, and it stands in stark contrast to the start of their season, when they managed only one goal in their opening four games. They have now scored at least three times in four of their past six matches. Before this, they had been winless in three home games this season, conceding four of their five goals in front of the empty North Stand, and for long spells the second half was played at training-ground pace, with the home side seemingly more intent on keeping a clean sheet than on adding to the scoreline.
Beating Viking next Wednesday, as would be expected, would put Villa on their way to likely qualification. Beyond that lies Saturday evening’s trip to Newcastle United and the perennial autumnal challenge of resurrecting a difficult start to the league season.