Aston Villa secured a 2-1 victory over Young Boys in the 2025-26 season of the UEFA Europa League, with Donyell Malen scoring both goals for his team. However, the match was marred by crowd trouble as Malen was struck on the head by an object thrown from the stands. The incident occurred during his goal celebration and led to clashes between fans and police.
Villa’s victory overshadowed by crowd violence
Malen’s first-half goals put Unai Emery’s side in control, despite a late scare from Young Boys’s Joel Monteiro. The goal was awarded in stoppage time after a VAR check. However, the night was marred by crowd trouble as Young Boys fans threw objects at Malen during his celebrations. This led to further unrest when police tried to remove some of them from the stands.
Young Boys captain attempts to calm crowd
In an attempt to quell the unrest, Young Boys captain Loris Benito went over to the away end. However, his efforts were in vain as seats were among the items hurled at police. The incident delayed the restart of play after Malen’s second goal late in the first half but eventually, normalcy was restored and the game resumed.
Malen shines for Villa
Malen, who was filling in for Ollie Watkins as the central striker, has now scored in three of his last four appearances. His partnership with Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers, who assisted his goals, was a highlight for Emery. In 18 appearances for Villa this season, he has scored six times, including thrice in the Europa League.
Villa are on course to reach the knockout stages
Villa have now won four out of five games in the Europa League and is on track to reach the knockout stages of this tournament. They are currently 2nd in the 36-team table with 12 points from 5 matches. If Villa finish in top 8, they will gain direct qualification for the Round of 16.
Decoding some of the key stats and records
As per Squawka, since the start of 2023/24, they’ve won more home major European matches than any other club (13 in 15). Malen has the most UEFA Europa League goals by an Aston Villa player in a single campaign (3). He moved past John Carew’s tally of two from 2009.
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