John Townley’s Aston Villa player ratings after Unai Emery’s side beat BSC Young Boys in the Europa League
19:48, 27 Nov 2025Updated 19:59, 27 Nov 2025
Donyell Malen scored a brace for Aston Villa against Young Boys(Image: Ryan Browne/Shutterstock)
Aston Villa claimed their seventh successive home win after defeating BSC Young Boys 2-1 in the Europa League.
The victory sees Villa post 12 points from a possible 15 in the league phase, having only failed to overcome Go Ahead Eagles, who inflicted a shock defeat on Villa last month.
Donyell Malen scored both of Villa’s goals on the night, with the strikes coming just 15 minutes apart in the first half.
There were ugly scenes at Villa Park after both goals, as Young Boys fans threw objects at Malen and his teammates following his opener.
After Malen doubled his tally, Young Boys fans responded to a warning from their captain, Loris Benito, by turning on each other. The situation escalated, with police and stewards intervening as drinks and seats – ripped from the stands by away fans – were thrown.
Villa started strongly, with Malen nearly opening the scoring with a spectacular effort from the edge of the box, saved by goalkeeper Marvin Keller.
Following an effort from Jadon Sancho, Young Boys had their only first-half chance when the ball was cut back to Rayan Raveloson, but his shot was well saved by Emi Martinez.
In the 24th minute, Morgan Rogers delivered a cross for Amadou Onana at the back post, but Malen couldn’t quite convert the Belgian’s header.
Shortly afterward, Youri Tielemans found Malen in the box, and the forward headed in the midfielder’s cross to break the deadlock.
After suffering a minor cut to the head, Malen ensured he kept a safe distance from the Swiss fans before scoring his second. The goal followed impressive work from Rogers, who created space and found Malen, who steadied himself and finished past Keller.
Young Boys substitutes Alyvn Sanches and Chris Bedia combined in the 73rd minute, with the latter putting the ball in the net, but VAR ruled that he strayed into an offside position.
Joel Monteiro, however, did find the back of the net late on, but Villa held out to claim successive Europa League wins.
Young Boys have now failed to win in any of their seven European visits to England, only managing draws against Liverpool in 2012 and Manchester United in 2021.
Gerardo Seoane’s side have conceded the most goals of any team in the Europa League this season (12) and have shipped 36 goals in 13 major European matches since the start of the 2024–25 season – more than any other side.
Villa return to Premier League action on Sunday, hosting Wolves, before traveling to Brighton next Wednesday.
Player ratings
Emi Martinez Martinez had very little to do aside from making a smart stop to prevent Reveloson from shooting from the edge of the box when the game was still level. 7
Lamare Bogarde Bogarde played at right-back as Matty Cash rested and Andres Garcia had only recently returned from injury. Very little came down his side, and he delivered a steady performance. 7
Victor Lindelof Lindelof came in at centre-back, allowing Ezri Konsa to rest. He was solid, playing at left centre-back for the final 30 minutes of the game. 7
Pau Torres Torres continued as the only fit left-sided centre-back. His composure and progression helped Villa sustain pressure on the opponent. 7
Ian Maatsen Maatsen has started all five of Villa’s Europa League matches this season. He enjoys these games, with limited defensive responsibility and more focus on attacking contributions. 7
Amadou Onana Onana returned to the starting XI after missing the 2-1 win at Leeds due to a minor injury. He had an early chance to score from a Tielemans cross but couldn’t get his feet right. He showed good energy over 80 minutes. 7
Youri Tielemans Tielemans captained Villa in McGinn’s absence. He played a beautiful ball into Guessand in the 20th minute, earning the assist for Villa’s opening goal. Displayed class throughout. 8
Evann Guessand Guessand had plenty of the ball and opportunities to influence the game but often chose the wrong options or lacked a quality final ball. 5
Morgan Rogers Rogers operated as the number 10, delivering two teasing crosses early in the game. Showed technical class above his opponents. 8
Jadon Sancho Sancho made his third consecutive Europa League start. Combined well with teammates but lacked a serious goal threat. Had a shot from a short corner and another effort late in the game that went wide. 6
Donyell Malen Malen has now scored 12 goals in 19 Europa League appearances. He opened the scoring with a header from Tielemans’ cross and later finished well after a Rogers assist. An excellent display, though Emery didn’t allow him a hat-trick opportunity. 9*
SUBS
Ollie Watkins (for Malen, 60’) – Brought on to boost his confidence but didn’t find the net. Barkley played him in late on, but a Young Boys defender did enough to stop the striker getting a clean contact on his finish. 6
Ross Barkley (for Tielemans, 60’) – Would have preferred to start, but added his presence off the bench. 6
Ezri Konsa (for Torres, 60’) – Took the armband after coming on. 6
Emi Buendia (for Rogers, 60’) – Made some neat touches and combinations. 6
Boubacar Kamara (for Onana, 79’) – N/A
Unused subs: Bizot, Oakley, Cash, McGinn, Garcia, Digne, Elliott.
GOALS
Aston Villa: Malen (27′, 42′)
Young Boys: Monteiro (90+1′)
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