Aston Villa staged a remarkable second-half comeback to defeat Salzburg 3-2 in their final Europa League group-stage match on Thursday, with 19-year-old Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba scoring his first goal for the club in the 87th minute to seal victory at Villa Park.
Salzburg had taken a 2-0 lead with an own goal from Victor Lindelof and a strike by Moussa Yeo. Morgan Rogers began Villaโs revival with a 64th-minute goal, and Tyrone Mings equalised before Jimoh-Aloba delivered the decisive winner.
Despite the victory, Villa could not overtake Lyon at the top of the 36-team standings, as the French side beat 10-man PAOK 4-2. Both Lyon and Villa had already secured qualification to the round of 16.
The remaining top eight advancing automatically to the last 16 are Midtjylland, Real Betis, Porto, Braga, Freiburg, and Roma. Midtjylland moved into third after a 2-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb. Real Betis defeated Feyenoord 2-1 in Seville, Porto rallied from a goal down to beat Rangers 3-1, Braga drew 0-0 at Go Ahead Eagles, and Roma equalised late through Jan Ziรณlkowski in a 1-1 draw with Panathinaikos. Freiburg lost 1-0 at Lille.
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Celtic secured one of the five Europa League playoff spots with a 4-2 win over Utrecht, racing to a 3-0 lead within 20 minutes through Benjamin Nygren, Nick Viergever (own goal), and Arne Engels. Nottingham Forest also advanced with a 4-0 win over Ferencvรกros, courtesy of two goals from Igor Jesus.
Off the pitch, UEFA and clubs paid tribute to seven PAOK fans who died in a minibus crash in Romania en route to the Lyon-PAOK match. Moments of silence were observed at Groupama Stadium, in Athens during Panathinaikosโ game, and at Lille. Clubs including Olympiakos, Panathinaikos, and Aris expressed condolences, while players at the Lille-Freiburg match joined in applause.
Villaโs dramatic late surge highlighted the resilience and determination that have characterised Unai Emeryโs side this season, ending the group stage on a high note as the club prepares for the knockout phase of the Europa League.
