Aston Villa suffer Club Brugge defeat after Mings concedes bizarre penalty
Villa - who were winless in three matches ahead of this trip - enjoyed the majority of possession in the early stages, but weren’t initially able to create clear-cut opportunities.
The hosts, who had taken three points from their opening three UCL games, showed no signs of backing down to their high-flying visitors, as they frequently displayed their threat on the counter.
Villa’s first big chance came at the half's midway point when Youri Tielemans tackled dispossessed Hans Vanaken and fed John McGinn, who in turn found Ollie Watkins, but the England striker could only fire wide of Simon Mignolet’s right-hand post from the edge of the box.
McGinn then headed Boubacar Kamara’s lofted cross over the bar, while at the other end, Ferran Jutglà struck the post following a lovely passing move before Emiliano Martínez tipped away Christos Tzolis’ low effort.
The hosts went on to threaten further, though Casper Nielsen failed to get a clean connection on Maxim De Cuyper’s inviting ball in - an escape for Unai Emery's men, who were increasingly in danger of falling behind by the time the half-time whistle blew.
The Spaniard didn’t make any changes heading into the second half though, but he would have been looking for more movement and urgency from his side.
What he would not have been expecting is for Villa to concede a penalty in truly bizarre fashion, as European debutant Tyrone Mings put his hand on the ball after Martínez had already done so from a goal-kick, with Vanaken stepping up and guiding his spot-kick down the middle.
By the 58th minute, Emery had seen enough, bringing on super sub Jhon Duran for McGinn, but if anything, Brugge grew in confidence after that point, with Watkins being shackled by the excellent Joel Ordóñez.
Kosta Nedeljković and Emiliano Buendía also came off the bench as Villa chased a winner, but clear-cut chances remained at a premium as Kamara fired a long-range drive wide of the upright.
Club Brugge therefore sealed a famous victory - their first in 15 head-to-heads against English sides - lifting the Belgians into the top 24 and giving them a spring in their step ahead of their meeting with Celtic on matchday five.
Villa, by contrast, have lots to ponder after yet another underwhelming display as they prepare for a daunting trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on Saturday.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Joel Ordonez (Club Brugge)
