Aston Villa secured an away victory in Bruges, becoming one of the first teams to win in the new league phase of the Champions League. The English club put in a solid performance to secure the three points in the match played in Belgium.
AEK Athens also celebrated a victory in this inaugural round of the league phase. The Greek team overcame LASK Linz, the Austrian team, in a match held in Greece.
The Champions League league phase is a new competition introduced this season by UEFA, replacing the old group format. This new format allows more teams to participate in a more extensive fixture structure.
With these results, Aston Villa and AEK Athens are among the first clubs to secure victories in this new edition of the European competition, marking the beginning of a different era in the main European club football competition.
