Aston Villa ease into Europa League quarter-finals | OneFootball

Aston Villa made no mistake against Lille and booked their place in the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals.

The Villans went into this one with a one-goal advantage after Ollie Watkins header in France and knew all they had to do was see out the 90 minutes to progress.

It wasn't a thrilling first half at Villa Park though with the only real close chance coming from a corner a few minutes before the break. John McGinn whipped the ball in with Amadou Onana angling a header that Berke Ozer had to be at full-stretch to keep out.

Of course, a first of half of little action was only good news for Unai Emery and his team especially with just how little the visitors offered going forward despite trailing on aggregate.

That goal advantage naturally meant that Villa could look to hit Lille on the break as they eventually showed more ambition and that's what happened early into the second half when Emiliano Martínez claimed a freekick before launching a ball up to Jadon Sancho. The wide man waited for the on-rushing McGinn who finished off a rapid counter to make it 1-0 on the night and 2-0 on aggregate.

The French side did have the net with just over an hour gone after a scooped pass through to Olivier Giroud who finished style but the veteran was offside.

Villa had a great chance to add another when again they broke with Sancho but this time he elected to shoot and saw his effort bounce back off the post.

The tie was finished off five minutes from time when Watkins got in behind the defence and squared the ball for Leon Bailey to have an easy finish and make it 3-0 on aggregate.

Villa will now take on the winner of AS Roma and Bologna in the quarter-finals.

Incidents: The story of the match

1':

The match begins

11':

Missed opportunity! Thomas Meunier from Lille attempts a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area following a corner, but it sails over the goal.

11':

Opportunity wasted. Thomas Meunier from Lille takes a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it sails over the goal following a corner kick.

21':

Opportunity wasted. Ayyoub Bouaddi from Lille attempted a header from the center of the penalty area.

48':

Opportunity wasted. Alexsandro Ribeiro from Lille had a header from close range, just inside the six-yard box on the left side, following a corner kick.

Aston Villa takes the lead with a score of 1-0 against Lille. John McGinn scores with a left-footed shot from the center of the box, placing it perfectly into the right corner. The assist comes from Jadon Sancho, who set him up after a swift counterattack.Aston Villa takes the lead 1-0 against Lille. John McGinn finds the back of the net with a left-footed shot from the middle of the box, placing it into the bottom right corner. The assist comes from Jadon Sancho, who set him up after a quick counterattack.

54':

GOAL Aston Villa: John McGinn (Aston Villa) scores!

John McGinn scores goal number 3 in the competition (7 matches)

71':

Opportunity wasted. Olivier Giroud of Lille attempted a header from the center of the penalty area but failed to convert. The assist came from Hákon Haraldsson, who delivered a cross following a corner kick.

Aston Villa leads 2-0 against Lille. Leon Bailey scores with a left-footed shot from the middle of the box, finding the center of the net. The assist came from Ollie Watkins.

85':

GOAL Aston Villa: Leon Bailey (Aston Villa) scores!

Leon Bailey scores goal number 1 in the competition (5 matches)