Club Brugge Boss Eyes ‘The Perfect Game’ Against Aston Villa | OneFootball

Alex Grimm/Getty Images

Club Brugge boss Ivan Leko is aware of Aston Villa’s weaknesses, although he has insisted that his side will have to ‘play the perfect game’ to get a result against the Midlands outfit.

The Villans are preparing for their second Champions League campaign under Unai Emery, returning to the competition after a one-season absence.

Aston Villa enjoyed an impressive run on that occasion in 2024/25, reaching the quarter-finals after finishing eighth in the league phase, and will now be looking to reproduce that level of European form.

The Midlands outfit can also draw encouragement from their Europa League triumph last term.

Their Premier League campaign, however, has offered little promise so far, with Aston Villa having to wait until the weekend’s meeting with Hull City to register their first point of the season.

They are now set to face Club Brugge on Tuesday, with Emery’s men seeking a more positive beginning to their Champions League journey.

Leko acknowledged that Aston Villa have undergone considerable change themselves, with several new arrivals needing to settle in while some important figures have departed.

The Croatian also underlined that Club Brugge will still need to produce an outstanding performance to trouble the Villans, stressing that victory will demand a virtually flawless display.

Leko was quoted as saying by Belgian outlet HLN: “They, too, have had to integrate many new players and lost a few key players.

“We know we will have to be very good to put the pressure on them.

“To win, however, we will have to play the perfect game.”

Club Brugge will head into the contest on the back of a weekend victory over Lommel, with the Blue-Black now looking to carry that momentum into their European opener.

The two clubs met three times in the 2024/25 Champions League, including a pre-quarter-final tie, with Aston Villa coming out on top twice and now hoping to repeat that success.

The two clubs were also briefly linked by transfer business during the summer, with Aston Villa pursuing Joel Ordonez as they searched for defensive reinforcements following Ezri Konsa’s departure to Arsenal.

However, Crystal Palace subsequently hijacked the Villans’ pursuit of Ordonez, reaching an agreement for the defender before the proposed switch collapsed after he failed his medical.

Aston Villa then turned to Taylor Harwood-Bellis to bolster their defensive ranks, but the Englishman is ineligible for any of their league-phase Champions League fixtures after being omitted from the squad list.