April 10, (THEWILL) — Ollie Watkins struck twice to hand Aston Villa a 3-1 first-leg triumph over Bologna in the Europa League quarter-final, putting Unai Emery’s side firmly in control of the tie.
Bologna were denied an early foothold when VAR overturned Santiago Castro’s close-range finish, ruling it out for offside in the build-up after the ball deflected off Ezri Konsa. Lewis Ferguson then struck the underside of the crossbar as the hosts pressed, though Villa weathered the storm to take the lead moments before the break.
Youri Tielemans delivered a corner that drifted beyond the reach of Federico Ravaglia, and Konsa attacked the ball at the far post to nod Villa ahead. The advantage was doubled six minutes into the second half when Torbjorn Heggem lost possession cheaply, allowing Emi Buendia to inadvertently tee up Watkins, who slid the ball through Ravaglia’s legs.
Federico Bernardeschi missed the target from Jonathan Rowe’s cutback before Rowe made amends with a late curling strike that gave Bologna a lifeline.
Villa were not done. Tielemans’ delivery from the corner flag once again undid the Italian side, and Watkins tapped in from close range to restore a two-goal lead and put Villa in a strong position ahead of the return.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
