Youri Tielemans played down Jhon Duran’s reaction to being substituted after scoring in Aston Villa’s 2-0 win over Bologna in the Champions League tonight. The victory was marked by the 20-year-old Duran, who guided in Morgan Rogers’ cross to double Villa’s lead nine minutes after John McGinn broke the deadlock in the 55th minute. This match was Duran’s second start of the season, and he was substituted shortly after scoring, continuing his form of scoring in successive Champions League games for Ollie Watkins. Despite needing a member of staff to calm him down initially, Duran was all smiles after the match concluded. Tielemans, when asked about the young forward post-match, offered words of praise.
Youri Tielemans said, “Duran has everything, he has technique, he can hold the ball and can flick on. He is an all-round striker. Morgan [Rogers] is more suited into the pockets. I joke with him calling him my pocket as I need him in those areas to get to my passes.” When asked about Duran’s reaction to being subbed, Tielemans responded, “He is really funny. The manager does not care. He knows everyone wants to play. It is part of the game.” Speaking on the team’s standing and the match, Tielemans added, “A brilliant win tonight. A tough opponent. The manager is really onto us. He wants us to keep raising the bar every game. I always try to improve myself. We had some really good work with the manager last year. He always gives us those challenges during the game, tonight we played a team who plays man to man and he challenged us to beat that.”
Villa’s current standing is strong as they now lead the Champions League phase table after the first round of matchweek three games. The team is in a promising position to qualify for the knockout stages.
