Aston Villa 3-1 Viking: a Ross Barkley header and a penalty make it three wins out of three
Ross Barkley's header, an Emiliano Buendía penalty and a Henrik Heggheim own goal had Aston Villa 3-0 up before Viking replied through Peter Christiansen, Villa winning 3-1 at Villa Park to complete a perfect Champions League start.
Aston Villa made it three wins from three in the Champions League, Ross Barkley's header and an Emiliano Buendía penalty either side of the half-hour mark putting them in control before Viking got a goal back late on at Villa Park.
Barkley headed Villa in front in the 23rd minute, set up by Ibrahim Mbaye, and Buendía made it two from the penalty spot in the 37th. Henrik Heggheim turned the ball into his own net in the 62nd minute to put Villa 3-0 up, before Peter Christiansen pulled one back for Viking in the 84th, volleying in a Kristoffer Askildsen assist. It was a clean game by discipline: neither side picked up a single card over the 90 minutes. Villa had the better of the chances throughout, ten shots on target to Viking's three.
A perfect record, in Europe and at home
Villa had beaten Club Brugge 3-2 away on matchday 1 and thrashed Fenerbahçe 6-0 at home on matchday 2; this third straight win takes them to nine points from three Champions League games, joining Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Real Betis as the only sides with a perfect record after matchday 3. Viking, who lost 1-3 at VfB Stuttgart and drew 3-3 at home to Bayern Munich in their first two games, stay on one point from three. In the Premier League, Villa currently sit 12th on eight points from seven matches — a reminder that this European form has not yet carried over to their domestic campaign.
Match stats
| Stat | Aston Villa | Viking |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 54% | 46% |
| Shots on target | 10 | 3 |
| Corners | 8 | 6 |
| Fouls | 7 | 14 |
| Offsides | 2 | 3 |
| Accurate passes | 469/527 (89%) | 377/434 (87%) |
| Yellow cards | 0 | 0 |
Match facts
- 23' — Ross Barkley (Aston Villa), header, assist Ibrahim Mbaye
- 37' — Emiliano Buendía (Aston Villa), penalty
- 62' — Henrik Heggheim (Viking), own goal
- 84' — Peter Christiansen (Viking), volley, assist Kristoffer Askildsen
- Villa Park, Birmingham — Champions League league phase, matchday 3, Wednesday 21 October 2026
What's next
Nine points from three games puts Villa among the five sides with a perfect Champions League record heading into matchday 4, a contrast to the mid-table Premier League form they will be looking to fix closer to home.
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