A moment of magic from Ollie Watkins gave Aston Villa a 1-0 first-leg win at Lille in their Europa League last-16 tie.
The striker's brilliant, looping header from Emi Buendia's flick-on means Unai Emery's side will be favourites to progress to a quarter-final against either Bologna or Roma ahead of the second leg against Lille at Villa Park on March 19.
Villa's lead really should be more at the halfway point in this tie. Amadou Onana clipped the bar from the edge of the box soon after the opener, Watkins then spurned a one-on-one chance and late on Buendia sent an acrobatic effort just wide.
But Emery will be quietly pleased to be taking an advantage away from a raucous Stade Pierre-Mauroy. His side had just one win in their previous seven outings but the four-time Europa League champion knows the steps to success in this competition.
The win is also a timely boost ahead of Villa's big Premier League trip to Man Utd on Sunday, live on Your Site - a game which could have a big say in the race for a Champions League spot.
Lille did lose the first leg of their play-off to reach this point at home to Red Star 1-0 before turning it around in Serbia so cannot be discounted and they showed their threat.
Olivier Giroud was agonisingly close to connecting with a close-range header in the first half and Emi Martinez - booed throughout due to his antics in Villa's 2024 Conference League shootout here - saved well from Matias Fernandez-Pardo after the goal.
However, it had largely been a cagey, low-quality contest until Watkins' header, with misplaced passes and off-target shots costing both sides in the final third.
The England man - who had managed just one goal in his previous 12 appearances - produced something special out of nowhere to take his team to victory and a step closer to the last eight.
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery to Villa TV:
"We played very seriously. We were always organised and we played trying to defend strongly, trying to feel comfortable defending as well, and trying to get some transition with the ball and to dominate with the ball - and we did it.
"We respect this competition because we know the difficulties of each match in Europe, away, and how it is for the English teams, like in the Champions League, how they were struggling.
"We didn't create a lot of chances, but some clear chances to score. I am happy with how the players responded to the game plan we did and how we are respecting and understanding the difficulties we can have, in case we are not playing seriously.
"After it, we need their skills and the capacity to do something, adding for the team individually or collectively, and we must add numbers from the players, like today with Watkins. We need to add numbers with Morgan (Rogers), with (Jadon) Sancho, with Leon Bailey, with (Emiliano) Buendia, with the midfielders.
"I am happy, but we know in the dressing room that it is the first leg. This result, 1-0, is good but we are going to play another 90 minutes, respecting them like we did today to play with this result."
Aston Villa captain John McGinn to TNT Sports:
"It was a good first leg. We know how these games change over two legs. Not to get carried away, we probably could have scored another couple of goals but Lille could have scored one or two themselves. A better performance but we've still got a lot to do."
On Villa returning to form: "We needed a wee bit of a reset. The past month hasn't been great at all. We can't dwell on it, we can learn from it. We need to build and tonight is a building block. We know we can do a lot better but it's a good result."
Your Site' Peter Smith:
It's a ton of Aston Villa wins now for Unai Emery. This one in Lille was certainly not his most eye-catching but it will have been an encouraging victory for the Villa boss and an important one.
His side have been searching for form, structure and confidence after a difficult recent run knocked their top-five push in the Premier League and ended their FA Cup prospects. They found all three in northern France.
In a hot atmosphere, they played with control and patience during a cagey first half. Ollie Watkins' excellent header on the hour will have breathed belief back into his game - although he did fluff a one-on-one opening soon after. Indeed, with Amadou Onana hitting the bar and Emi Buendia going close with a scissor-kick, Villa may feel they should have a bigger margin to take back to Villa Park.
But Emery - who knows just what is required to succeed in this competition - will be buoyed by the signs the training ground time Villa have had over the previous 12 days or so has paid off. The return to action of captain John McGinn added to the feeling Villa may just be getting back on track.
Ahead of a huge Premier League trip to Man Utd on Sunday - live on Your Site - it could be perfectly timed, too.
Round of 16 second legs: March 19
Quarter-finals: April 9 and 16
Semi-finals: April 30 and May 7
Final: May 20 [Besiktas Stadium, Istanbul]
