Aston Villa will look to mark their return to the UEFA Champions League with a win when they travel to Swiss club Young Boys in their opening game of the campaign on Tuesday.
The Villans bounced back from a two-goal deficit to defeat Everton 3-2 in their last league match on Saturday. A brace from Ollie Watkins along with a wondergoal from Jhon Duran brought home the victory.
Young Boys also won 4-2 in their last game in the Swiss Cup against Vevey. However, their league form has been disappointing with only three points after six games.
The Sporting News looks at the key details ahead of this game, including how to watch the match, kickoff times and the latest lineup news.
Here’s how to watch this Champions League match in Australia:
TV channel: —
Live stream: Stan Sport
Fans can watch Young Boys vs. Aston Villa live or on-demand exclusively on Stan Sport.
Australian viewers can catch all 189 Champions League matches on Stan Sport this season. Additionally, they can also catch all UEFA Europa League games and UEFA Conference League fixtures on the platform.
This Champions League clash takes place at the Stadion Wankdorf in Bern, Switzerland and kicks off on Tuesday, September 17 at 6:45 p.m. local time.
Here’s how that time translates across Australia:
Date | Kickoff time | |
Australian Eastern Standard Time | Wed, Sep. 18 | 2:45 a.m. |
Australian Central Standard Time | Wed, Sep. 18 | 2:15 a.m. |
Australian Western Standard Time | Wed, Sep. 18 | 12:45 a.m. |
Aston Villa will be missing some key players such as Leon Bailey, Matty Cash, and Boubacar Kamara. Additionally, backup goalkeeper Robin Olsen is also on the sidelines.
Ollie Watkins should retain his spot in the starting lineup after his excellent performance against Everton, with Jhon Duran to come off the bench in the second half.
Aston Villa XI (4-2-3-1, right to left): Martinez (GK) — Nedeljkovic, Konsa, Torres, Digne — Onana, Barkley — McGinn, Tielemans, Rogers — Watkins
Injured: Bailey, Cash, Kamara, Olsen
Suspended: None
Young Boys come into this match with an injury crisis. Saidy Janko, Meschack Elia, Abdu Conte, Patric Pfeiffer, Lukasz Lakomy, and Sadin Crnovrsanin are all on the sidelines.
Silvere Ganvoula, who has scored three of the team’s seven league goals so far, could be the lone striker.
Young Boys predicted XI (4-2-3-1, right to left): Von Ballmoos (GK) — Blum, Camara, Zoukrou, Hadjam — Niasse, Lauper — Monteiro, Ugric, Colley — Ganvoula
Injured: Janko, Elia, Conte, Pfeiffer, Lakomy, Crnovrsanin
Suspended: None
This is the first match-up between Aston Villa and Young Boys.
Aston Villa have had some shaky performances and are not used to playing in a Champions League atmosphere. However, they should still come out victors even if Young Boys don’t make it easy for them.
Wednesday, September 18
Thursday, September 19
Friday, September 20