Villa advances to UEL round of 16 as Roma and Porto secure places in the quarter-finals.
Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba netted his inaugural goal for Aston Villa, securing an 87th-minute winner in a 3-2 comeback triumph against Salzburg, wrapping up the initial stage of the Europa League on Thursday.
The 19-year-old Jimoh-Aloba’s goal came after Tyrone Mings leveled the score at Villa Park. Morgan Rogers initiated the comeback in the 64th minute after the visitors had established a 2-0 advantage with an own goal from Victor Lindelof followed by a goal from Moussa Yeo.
However, Villa was unable to surpass Lyon at the top of the 36-team standings, as the French side defeated 10-man PAOK 4-2, maintaining their lead over Unai Emery’s squad on goal difference. Both Lyon and Villa had already secured their places in the round of 16 scheduled for March.
The seven PAOK supporters who lost their lives in a minibus accident in Romania this week while en route to a match between Lyon and their team were commemorated at stadiums across France and Greece.
Lyon extended its “sincere condolences” to PAOK, while fan associations from rival Greek clubs Olympiakos, Panathinaikos, Aris, and others shared messages of solidarity and sympathy.
A moment of silence was observed at Groupama Stadium in Lyon, as well as in Athens where Panathinaikos faced Roma.
Similar to the Champions League, the top eight teams automatically progress to the last 16. Teams ranked from ninth to 24th will participate in a two-leg playoff.
The remaining top eight teams include third-place Midtjylland, Real Betis, Porto, Braga, Freiburg, and Roma.
Midtjylland, a Danish club, secured a 2-0 victory over Dinamo Zagreb to rise to third place, just two points behind Lyon and Villa.
In Seville, former Manchester United winger Antony scored and assisted Abde Ezzalzouli’s goal in Real Betis’s 2-1 victory over Feyenoord.
Porto came back from a goal down to defeat Rangers 3-1, moving up from ninth to fifth, while Braga advanced to sixth place after a 0-0 draw against Go Ahead Eagles. Ten-man Freiburg fell to ninth following a 1-0 defeat at Lille.
Jan Ziółkowski scored an 80th-minute equalizer for Roma in a 1-1 draw with Panathinaikos.
Celtic secured one of the five remaining playoff spots on Thursday by defeating Utrecht 4-2. The playoff draw is set for Friday.
The Scottish club took a 3-0 lead within the first 20 minutes at Celtic Park, with goals from Benjamin Nygren, an own goal by Nick Viergever, and a penalty from Arne Engels.
Igor Jesus scored twice for Nottingham Forest in a 4-0 victory over Ferencváros.
