BIRMINGHAM, England: An early goal from John McGinn helped Aston Villa to kick off their Europa League campaign with a gritty 1-0 group-stage win over Bologna on Thursday, while Olivier Giroud came off the bench to nod in a late winner in Lille’s dramatic 2-1 triumph against SK Brann.
Scottish midfielder McGinn’s decisive goal came in the 13th minute, setting Villa off to a positive start in their European campaign at Villa Park.
McGinn broke the deadlock when a cleverly worked short corner found him in space outside the box. With precision, he struck a low shot that nestled into the bottom corner, leaving Bologna goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski rooted to the spot.
Ollie Watkins had a golden opportunity to double Villa’s lead in the 68th minute from the penalty spot, after being brought down by Martin Vitik. But his tame effort was easily saved by Skorupski.
Just minutes later, Bologna came agonizingly close to an equalizer when Santiago Castro’s powerful header crashed against the crossbar and bounced out of play.
