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Tyrone Mings scored his first goal for Aston Villa since April 2023 At a glance Ollie Watkins forced off with hamstring injury in first half Red Bull Salzburg take 2-0 lead early in second half Morgan Rogers and Tyrone Mings hit back for Villa Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba, 19, scores late winner for hosts PLAYER RATER Aston Villa fought back from 2-0 down to beat Red Bull Salzburg and finish second in the Europa League league phase, but Ollie Watkins was forced off to compound their injury issues. Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba's first senior goal earned a late victory for the hosts, who had already qualified for the last 16, at Villa Park. Karim Konate and Moussa Yeo had put the visitors in charge, before Morgan Rogers cut the deficit and Tyrone Mings levelled with 15 minutes remaining, then 19-year-old Jimoh-Aloba struck late on. However, striker Watkins came off with a hamstring problem and could now join the injured John Mc Ginn and Youri Tielemans on the sidelines, with Boubacar Kamara already out for the season. Villa's injury woes meant Liverpool loanee Harvey Elliott came in from the cold for his first appearance in almost four months. He nearly scored within 30 seconds, only for the diving Alexander Schlager to make a fortunate stop with his heel, before the visitors took control. Emi Martinez made a double save to deny Soumaila Diabate and Konate before Villa conceded a calamitous opener. Mings was robbed by Edmund Baidoo and Konate's awful shot with the goal gaping looked to be going wide before being turned in by Victor Lindelof. Within four minutes of the restart substitute Yeo flicked in Salzburg's second, but Rogers pulled a goal back just after the hour - after Sota Kitano should have made it 3-0 - and Mings atoned for his error by heading in with 14 minutes left. Substitute Jimoh-Aloba then grabbed an 87th-minute winner when he found the corner from 15 yards. What did you make of Aston Villa's display? Villa were sloppy and sluggish for an hour on Thursday and Salzburg were in total control at 2-0 up. Yet once Rogers scored there seemed little doubt the hosts would at least get a draw - and, once again under Unai Emery, Villa found a way to win and maintain their unbeaten home European record this season. Victory came at a price, however, after Watkins had to leave the field because of injury in the first half. The England striker clutched his hamstring and walked straight down the tunnel after coming off - and Emery and his already stretched squad could do without another injury. Tammy Abraham has arrived from Besiktas and could now go straight into the starting XI against Brentford on Sunday depending on Watkins' prognosis. Having lost three other key players to injury this month - Kamara, Mc Ginn and Tielemans - Villa cannot afford Watkins to be out for long. They will need Abraham to hit the ground running, with forward Evann Guessand on his way to Crystal Palace on loan. Aston Villa host Brentford on Sunday (14: 00 GMT kick-off) before travelling to Bournemouth on 7 February (15: 00). After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users. Comments can not be loaded To load Comments you need to enable Java Script in your browser Last Updated 29th January 2026 at 22: 25 Please Note: All times UK. Tables are subject to change. The BBC is not responsible for any changes that may be made. Manager: Unai Emery Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Thomas Letsch Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Unai Emery Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Thomas Letsch Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 UEFA Europa League All competitions Aston Villa and FC RB Salzburg have never faced before in a European match – the Villans’ only previous games against an Austrian side was in UEFA Europa League qualifying in both 2009-10 and 2010-11 against SK Rapid, going out both times. FC RB Salzburg are winless in all eight major European meetings with English teams (D2 L6), losing both previous games in the UEFA Europa League against Man City in 2010-11 (0-2 home, 0-3 away). Including qualifiers, Aston Villa have won 14 of their last 16 home matches in European competitions (D1 L1), winning each of their last six in a row. The Villans are aiming to win seven in a row at Villa Park for the very first time in European competition. FC RB Salzburg have lost their last five away matches in major European competition – they’ve never previously lost six in a row. All five of Aston Villa’s UEFA Europa League goals at Villa Park this season have been scored by players whose surname begins with M (x1 Mc Ginn, x1 Maatsen, x3 Malen), although Donyell Malen has since left the club. Players whose surnames don’t begin with M have had 29 shots and scored with none. Attempt saved. Soumaïla Diabaté (FC Red Bull Salzburg) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa). Attempt blocked. Karim Konaté (FC Red Bull Salzburg) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Sota Kitano. Foul by George Hemmings (Aston Villa). Mads Bidstrup (FC Red Bull Salzburg) wins a free kick in the defensive half. George Hemmings (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Sota Kitano (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Offside, FC Red Bull Salzburg. Edmund Baidoo is caught offside. Offside, FC Red Bull Salzburg. Edmund Baidoo is caught offside. Kerim Alajbegovic (FC Red Bull Salzburg) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Harvey Elliott (Aston Villa). Attempt blocked. Sota Kitano (FC Red Bull Salzburg) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Attempt blocked. Karim Konaté (FC Red Bull Salzburg) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Edmund Baidoo. Foul by Victor Lindelöf (Aston Villa). Karim Konaté (FC Red Bull Salzburg) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt saved. Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Alexander Schlager (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Assisted by Lucas Digne with a cross. Harvey Elliott (Aston Villa) wins a free kick on the right wing. Foul by Soumaïla Diabaté (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Attempt saved. Harvey Elliott (Aston Villa) left footed shot from very close range is saved in the centre of the goal by Alexander Schlager (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Attempt saved. Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner by Alexander Schlager (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Assisted by Emiliano Buendía. Foul by Frans Krätzig (FC Red Bull Salzburg). Copyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
