Aston Villa’s domestic start has provided little cause for optimism, but Unai Emery can take encouragement from a much stronger recent European away record before Tuesday’s trip to Club Brugge.
Villa have failed to win any of their opening three Premier League matches and remain without a league goal.
Their performances away from Villa Park in Europe tell a different story.
Emery’s side won five of their seven away matches during last season’s Europa League campaign, including victories at Feyenoord, Basel, Fenerbahçe, Lille and Bologna.
That record eventually helped Villa lift their first European trophy since 1982.
The contrast could be significant ahead of a return to the Jan Breydel Stadium, where Villa have already experienced both victory and defeat under Emery.
Aston Villa won five of seven Europa League away games
Villa’s 2025/26 Europa League away results were:
| Fixture | Result |
|---|---|
| Feyenoord vs Aston Villa | 0-2 W |
| Go Ahead Eagles vs Aston Villa | 2-1 L |
| Basel vs Aston Villa | 1-2 W |
| Fenerbahçe vs Aston Villa | 0-1 W |
| Lille vs Aston Villa | 0-1 W |
| Bologna vs Aston Villa | 1-3 W |
| Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa | 1-0 L |
That produced five wins and only two defeats, with Villa scoring 10 goals and conceding five.
UEFA’s complete 2025/26 Europa League results show that Villa won four consecutive European away fixtures between December and April.
The run began with a 2-1 victory at Basel.
Villa then beat Fenerbahçe 1-0 in Istanbul before recording another 1-0 win at Lille in the round of 16.
A 3-1 quarter-final victory at Bologna followed.
Emery’s side eventually lost 1-0 at Nottingham Forest in the semi-final first leg before overturning the deficit emphatically at Villa Park.
They then beat Freiburg 3-0 at a neutral venue in Istanbul to win the competition.
Villa have already won at Club Brugge under Emery
Tuesday’s stadium should also hold positive memories.
Villa initially lost 1-0 at Club Brugge during the 2024/25 Champions League league phase.
Four months later, they returned for the first leg of their round-of-16 tie and produced a very different performance.
Villa won 3-1, before completing a 6-1 aggregate victory at Villa Park.
Our complete Aston Villa Champions League record under Unai Emery shows that Villa won three of their six away matches during that campaign.
Alongside the victory in Bruges, Emery’s team also won 3-0 at Young Boys and 3-2 at RB Leipzig.
Defeats came against Club Brugge, Monaco and eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Villa therefore know exactly how dramatically European games at the Jan Breydel Stadium can change.
Aston Villa’s full European away record under Emery
Villa returned to European competition under Emery against Hibernian in August 2023.
That first trip produced a 5-0 victory, which UEFA records as Villa’s biggest European away win.
Including that Conference League qualifying match, Villa have played 20 competitive European away fixtures under Emery before Tuesday.
Their record is:
- 20 matches
- 10 wins
- 2 draws
- 8 defeats
- 33 goals scored
- 22 goals conceded
- 50% win rate
The neutral-site Europa League final against Freiburg is not included.
Villa’s first Conference League campaign accounts for much of the less impressive side of that record.
They won only two of seven away fixtures if the Hibernian qualifier is included, drawing twice and losing three times.
That makes the improvement across the following two campaigns notable.
Emery’s European record matters before Club Brugge
None of this removes the problems Villa have shown domestically.
The rebuilt team still needs time to develop combinations, while Nicolas Jackson and several other summer signings are adapting to Emery’s system.
However, Villa have repeatedly shown under the Spaniard that European football can bring out a different version of the team.
They reached the Champions League quarter-finals in 2024/25 before winning the Europa League one year later.
Our Club Brugge scouting report shows why Tuesday remains a serious challenge, particularly given the Belgian champions’ excellent home record in UEFA competition.
Villa should not travel without belief.
Their recent European away record includes wins in Rotterdam, Istanbul, Lille, Bologna and Bruges.
Emery will now want another one in Belgium.
