Unai Emery challenges Aston Villa to become Champions League 'protagonists' after 6-0 rout of Fenerbahce as boss hails 'one very big step forwards'

Emery has challenged Villa to become leading protagonists in this season's Champions League after guiding the club to their biggest European victory in history. Braces from Nicolas Jackson and Ross Barkley, coupled with strikes from Johan Manzambi and Tammy Abraham, sealed a ruthless 6-0 thrashing of Fenerbahce in front of the Prince of Wales at Villa Park. A long-awaited first home victory of the season also ruined former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood's return to English football on his first appearance in the country since January 2022.

Despite cruising into a 3-0 half-time lead through birthday boy Manzambi and Jackson's clinical brace, Villa rode their luck at times as Zion Suzuki denied Vedat Muriqi and Oguz Aydin rattled the crossbar.

Evaluating his side's mixed performance after weathering a turbulent start to the campaign, Emery said: "We are delighted with the first win at home. Then how we played in the first half I was not so happy. They didn't score but Zion [Suzuki] played fantastic, they hit the crossbar.

"We wanted to control the match better. In the second half we were planning to correct what we didn't do well in the first half, and I think we did it. Then we tried to stop them and we scored three more. I don't think they deserved 6-0 but for us, it's important for us to achieve the first win at home and how we could manage the different players as well and the progression in how we stepped forward."

Assessing how his summer arrivals are gelling and outlining their push for automatic qualification, Emery added: "We must exploit the different aspects of our capacity and sometimes we can score through set pieces. Sometimes we can score through transition in high press. Sometimes we will score well in transition. I think we had different goals today and I can feel confident.

"I was confident before today but there is still a lot of work to do. Our structure is strong, but we need more time. We are progressively getting better, progressively getting the balance that we need and today we took one very big step forwards. And those three points for us in the table is important and we are being ambitious. We want to be protagonists in the Champions League."

Jackson was eager to step up from the spot in the 68th minute to complete his hat-trick after Manzambi was felled by Ismail Yuksek, but Emery made clear Barkley was always the designated taker. The midfielder calmly converted before grabbing his second four minutes later with a deflected strike past goalkeeper Ederson.

Downplaying any disappointment over missing out on a hat-trick while singing the praises of his fellow forwards, Jackson told TNT Sports: "The most important thing is we win. Hopefully next time I'll get the hat trick.

"He [Manzambi] is a top player. I'm really happy we're playing together. I hope we score many more goals together.

"He [Ibrahim Mbaye] is an amazing player. We're in the [Senegal] national team together. Hopefully he'll get more time to play. He's very fast. It's good to have him."

Celebrating a dream milestone on his 21st birthday in front of his family, Manzambi said: "Today was very good. We scored six goals and no goals conceded. That's very nice. For the fans it's amazing. Very happy. My first Champions League game and my first goal - on my birthday. My family are here. That's very nice for me. Amazing team. Amazing fans. I'm very happy to play here."

Maximum points from their opening two fixtures leave Villa sitting comfortably near the top of the Champions League table. Emery's men are well placed to extend their hundred percent start in Europe when they host Norwegian side Viking next week, while the Midlands club will hope this emphatic home performance can revitalise their domestic form and trigger a steady climb up the standings across the 2026-27 campaign.