Overview

• Villa made it two wins from two in the Europa League group after withstanding heavy first-half pressure in Rotterdam.
• Emiliano Martínez was withdrawn in the warm-up with a calf issue, and debutant Marco Bizot protected the clean sheet with several key saves.
• Emiliano Buendía opened the scoring before captain John McGinn added a second from a loose ball following Donyell Malen’s driving run.
• Unai Emery publicly thanked roughly 2,400 travelling supporters on Instagram, crediting their backing for the away win.
• The display continued Villa’s turnaround after a winless start and has revived discussion about Buendía’s place while underscoring McGinn’s growing influence.