Unai Emery hails Aston Villa fightback against RB Salzburg for top-two finish

Villa, who had already sealed a place in the last 16, made it seven wins from eight group matches, but were pushed hard by a Salzburg side chasing qualification. Emery's team trailed 2–0 before a strong second-half response turned the night around.

Karim Konate punished a mistake from Tyrone Mings to give Salzburg the lead before the break, and Moussa Yeo's clever flick doubled the visitors' advantage early in the second half. 

Villa looked in danger of surrendering their top-two spot, but Morgan Rogers sparked the comeback in the 64th minute with a well-taken goal.

Mings then made amends for his earlier error by heading in the equaliser, before 19-year-old Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba completed the turnaround with his first senior goal.

Emery said: "Europe is always difficult. Today we faced a team that needed to win and we struggled, losing 2–0. But how we reacted was very good. I am very happy with the collective performance."

He added: "We used some young players and for them it is very important to have chances. The priority is the Premier League, but this competition is our second objective. The fans gave us energy and we reacted."

There was concern for Ollie Watkins, who went off with a hamstring issue in the first half. Emery said: "He felt something, but not a lot. We will test him and see if he is available for Sunday."

Harvey Elliott made his first start since October, but Emery confirmed his loan situation remains unchanged despite the midfielder's positive display.