Young Boys vs Aston Villa facts

Aston Villa's first game in the UEFA Champions League takes them to Switzerland to face a Young Boys side who are fast becoming regulars in the competition proper.

While Villa are taking part in the European Cup for only the third time, and the first in 42 seasons, their hosts have progressed through qualifying for the fourth time since 2018/19, although this is the first time they have achieved the feat in successive seasons.

This is the teams' first meeting.

Form guide

Young Boys

Record vs English clubs: W2 D2 L8 F14 A32
Home record vs English clubs: W2 D0 L4

YB were paired with Manchester City in last season's group stage, losing 1-3 at home on Matchday 3 and 0-3 away two weeks later.

They faced City's neighbours Manchester United in both of their first two Champions League group stage appearances, losing 0-3 at home and 0-1 away – conceding in the 91st minute – in 2018/19. They fared better in 2021/22, a goal five minutes into added time from Jordan Siebatcheu snatching a 2-1 Matchday 1 win in Berne before a 1-1 draw in Manchester on Matchday 6 – those points accounting for four of the five YB accumulated in Group F.

The Swiss side won their first home game against an English club – 3-2 against Tottenham in the 2010/11 Champions League play-offs first leg, a tie they lost 6-3 on aggregate – and against United but lost the other four, conceding 15 goals.

Home and away, that 2021 win against United is YB's only victory in their last 11 fixtures against English clubs (D2 L8).

Including 2024/25, YB have reached the Champions League proper four times – all in the last seven seasons.

In 2023/24, the Swiss side finished third in their section behind Manchester City and Leipzig but ahead of Crvena Zvezda thanks to a 2-0 home win against the Serbian side on Matchday 5; they had drawn 2-2 in Belgrade, losing their other four games.

Young Boys therefore moved across into the Europa League but their campaign lasted only one tie, a defeat against Sporting CP in the knockout round play-offs (1-3 h, 1-1 a).

The Bern club started this season in the Champions League play-offs, winning 3-2 at home to Galatasaray and sealing a place in the league phase with a 1-0 away win in Istanbul.

The Swiss club have lost four of their last seven European home matches – as many as in their previous 21 games – winning the other three.

YB won their sixth Swiss Super League title in seven years in 2023/24, their 17th championship overall.

Aston Villa

Record vs Swiss clubs: W2 D1 L1 F8 A4
Away record vs Swiss clubs: W0 D1 L1

All four of Villa's previous fixtures against teams from Switzerland came in the UEFA Intertoto Cup. They beat Basel 5-2 on aggregate in a 2001 final (1-1 a, 4-1 h) and Zürich 3-2 in the third round the following year (0-2 a, 3-0 h).

The English side have therefore never won in Switzerland; seven of their eight goals against Swiss teams have come at Villa Park.

This is Villa's first Champions League campaign – they are the 11th English club to feature in the competition proper.

Villa are taking part in the European Cup for the third time overall, and a first since 1982/83, when they lost 5-2 on aggregate to eventual runners-up Juventus in the quarter-finals (1-2 h, 1-3 a).

That ended their defence of the trophy they had claimed with a 1-0 win against Bayern München in the 1982 final in Rotterdam, Peter Withe scoring the only goal in the second half.

The Villans were involved in European competition for the first time since 2010/11 in 2023/24, Unai Emery's team reaching the UEFA Europa Conference League semi-finals before coming up short against eventual champions Olympiacos (2-4 h, 0-2 a). Villa had finished first in their section before wins against Ajax in the round of 16 (0-0 a, 4-0 h) and LOSC Lille in the quarter-finals (2-1 h, 1-2 a aet, 4-3 pens).

The Birmingham club have lost their last two away European games; victories at Hibernian (5-0) and AZ Alkmaar (4-1) in 2023/24 are their only wins in their last 11 UEFA matches away from home, a run that includes six defeats.

Emery guided Villa to fourth place in the Premier League in 2023/24 – their highest finish since 1995/96, when they were also fourth.

Villa are one of five clubs to be making their Champions League debuts in 2024/25, along with Brest, Bologna, Girona and Slovan Bratislava.

Links and trivia

Emery's Villarreal won 4-1 in Switzerland and 2-0 in Spain against Young Boys in the 2021/22 Champions League group stage.

Has played in England:
Saidy Janko (Manchester United 2013–15, Bolton 2015 loan, Barnsley 2016/17 loan, Nottingham Forest 2018/19 loan)

Latest news

Young Boys

On Saturday Young Boys were 4-2 winners at third division Vevey-Sports in the last 32 of the Swiss Cup, letting slip a two-goal lead before strikes in the final ten minutes from Darian Males and Meschack Elia secured victory.

That made it seven games unbeaten in all competitions (W4 D3).

The Swiss champions are, however, without a win in the league this season (D3 L3).

Patrick Rahmen's side lost their first three games of 2024/25 – at home to Sion (1-2) and away at Servette (1-3) and St Gallen (0-4). They did not suffer their third league defeat last season until 27 January.

The loss at St Gallen was Young Boys' biggest since a 4-0 defeat at Luzern in the Swiss Cup quarter-finals on 6 March 2019 and their heaviest league reverse since 10 May 2018, when they went down 5-1 at Basel.

Since those opening three defeats, YB have drawn at home to Zürich (2-2) and Lausanne (1-1) and at Yverdon (2-2).

Young Boys' tally of three points after six games is 11 less than at the same stage of last season.

Silvère Ganvoula has scored three of the Bern club's seven league goals so far.

This is Young Boys' longest run without a league win since a seven-game run in March and April 2022.

Aston Villa

Villa have won three of their first four Premier League games, coming from 0-2 down to beat Everton 3-2 at Villa Park on Saturday with substitute Jhon Durán hitting the winner.

Seven of Durán's league goals for Villa have been as a substitute, all three of them this season winners.

Ollie Watkins had got Villa's first two goals, his first in the Premier League since 14 April.

The first two victories both came by a 2-1 scoreline, at West Ham on 17 August and Leicester two weeks later. Amadou Onana and Durán both scored in both games.

Unai Emery's side won their first eight home Premier League games in 2023/24 but lost their first this season, 0-2 against Arsenal on 24 August.

On 6 September Youri Tielemans was on target as Belgium won 3-1 at home to Israel in the UEFA Nations League.

Three days later Morgan Rogers scored twice as England beat Austria 4-1 in an Under-21 friendly.

Leon Bailey has been out since 31 August with a hamstring injury.

Matty Cash suffered a thigh injury against Arsenal and has not played since.

Diego Carlos is yet to play this season, although he was an unused replacement on Saturday, while Jaden Philogene was a 90th-minute substitute having been sidelined since 17 August.

Long-term absentees Tyrone Mings (out since 12 August 2023, knee) and Boubacar Kamara (11 February, knee) are still sidelined although both are back in training.

Emiliano Martínez has again been nominated for the 2024 Ballon d'Or and shortlisted for the Yashin Trophy, for the best goalkeepers in the world. Martínez, the 2023 Yashin award winner, was 15th in last year's Ballon d'Or; the 2024 winner will be announced on 28 October.