Aston Villa produced seven shots on target in the first half against Club Brugge after managing just one across their opening three Premier League matches combined.
That is probably the clearest number yet to illustrate how dramatically Unai Emery’s attack changed in Belgium.
Villa arrived in Bruges without a Premier League goal this season and with questions growing over how quickly a heavily rebuilt forward line would click.
Forty-five minutes later, John McGinn, Emi Buendía and Nicolas Jackson had all scored.
Sky Sports recorded Villa finishing the 3-2 Champions League victory with 21 shots and nine on target, while The Times highlighted that seven of those efforts on target came before half-time.
That first-half total alone was seven times Villa’s combined figure from their opening three league fixtures.
Aston Villa finally attacked with speed
The biggest improvement was not simply finishing.
Villa looked far more willing to attack space quickly rather than allowing opponents to recover into their defensive shape.
Pau Torres was central to that.
The centre-back provided two assists, including the long pass which released Jackson for Villa’s third goal.
His willingness to play forward early gave Club Brugge less time to organise and allowed Jackson to attack the space behind their defence.
We looked more closely at Pau Torres’ two-assist performance against Club Brugge, but his influence also tells a wider story about Villa’s attack.
Emery’s side did not need prolonged spells of possession to create chances.
They needed to move the ball forward at the right moment.
Nicolas Jackson changes the picture
Jackson also offered something Villa had lacked during their slow domestic start.
The summer signing repeatedly threatened the space behind Brugge rather than waiting for possession in front of the defence.
That eventually produced his first Aston Villa goal.
Torres recognised the run, Jackson beat goalkeeper Yann Sommer to the pass and finished into an empty net.
Jackson has since insisted there is “more to come” after opening his Villa account.
His movement could prove just as important as the goals.
Villa’s opening Premier League performances frequently became congested because opponents were comfortable defending what was in front of them.
A striker constantly threatening to run beyond the back line forces defenders to retreat and can create more room for Buendía, McGinn and Villa’s midfielders between the lines.
João Gomes gives Villa more aggression
João Gomes’ return also mattered.
The Brazilian was eligible in Europe despite still serving his domestic suspension and brought additional intensity alongside Boubacar Kamara.
Gomes provided the assist for Buendía’s goal and was prepared to play forward quickly after Villa regained possession.
It helped produce a first half that looked very different from the cautious football seen during the opening weeks.
The bad news for Emery is that Gomes remains unavailable when Nottingham Forest visit Villa Park on Saturday.
That leaves the manager needing to reproduce the same energy without one of the players who helped deliver it in Bruges.
Club Brugge win must become the new standard
There were still warnings.
Club Brugge dominated periods of the second half and forced Villa to defend their advantage after Nicolò Tresoldi converted from the penalty spot.
Emery therefore cannot simply take the final score and declare Villa’s attacking problems solved.
The first half does, however, provide a blueprint.
Villa created chances by playing forward sooner, attacking space behind the defence and getting more players close to Jackson.
Seven first-half shots on target after producing only one across 270 minutes of Premier League football is too dramatic a difference to ignore.
Our Club Brugge 2-3 Aston Villa match report details the breakthrough victory.
The next challenge is Nottingham Forest.
If the attacking approach seen in Belgium follows Villa back to Villa Park, their domestic goal drought should not survive much longer.
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