Aston Villa captain John McGinn hailed Jadon Sancho for producing his “best performance in a Villa shirt” in tonight’s Europa League win over Lille.
Sancho made the first goal, scored by McGinn, before Leon Bailey doubled the hosts’ advantage late on to send Unai Emery’s men through to the quarter-finals 3-0 on aggregate.
There has been plenty of speculation around Sancho’s future with the on-loan winger’s Manchester United contract expiring this summer. A third spell at Borussia Dortmund has been suggested and the former England man certainly put himself in the shop window with a superb display against the Ligue 1 side.
His best moment was taking a long ball from goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez in his stride before setting up McGinn for the opener with a beautifully weighted pass.
“It was brilliant from Emi but it highlights Jadon’s performance, his best in a Villa shirt,” said Scotland international McGinn. “He was man of the match tonight by a mile.”
McGinn also reserves praise for ‘madman’ Martinez
Martinez’s vision was a feature of the night, another long pass from the Argentina international helping set up Bailey’s strike.
McGinn added: “He’s a mad man. I know he’s a family man but he is a big kid inside, a lively character and a top goalkeeper but even at 2-0 he made a great save.”
It was a much-needed return to form for Villa, whose hopes of securing a Champions League place for next season via the Premier League have taken a hit after four games without a win.
They have played much better in Europe and will now face Bologna, who edged out Roma 5-4 on aggregate after a 4-3 triumph at the Stadio Olimpico.
“We have got to take it game by game, it is a tough competition, Europe is very different,” said Sancho. “We stuck to the game plan, we worked hard on and off the ball, if we keep [doing] this I’m sure we can go very far in this competition.
“It is a lovely feeling [to go through]. Tonight has been incredible with the fans. We stuck to the gameplan, that’s what we needed and hopefully we keep that momentum into the Premier League.”
