AFCON 2025
Raphael Onyedika is quite confident that Club Brugge can overturn the two-goal when they travel to Aston Villa.
Club Brugge lost the first leg of their round of sixteen tie against Unai Emery’s side at home on Tuesday.
Leon Bailey gave the Aston Villa the lead in the third minute before Maxim De Cuyper equalizer before the half hour mark.
However, Brandon Mechele’s own goal in the second half gave Aston Villa the lead while Marco Asencio’s late penalty secured a 3-1 for the Premier League side.
Despite the loss, Onyedika says his team won’t give in a post-match reaction.
It was a tough conclusion for us. The result was heading in the right direction, so it was tough for us at the end,” Onyedika said to UEFA’s official website.
“In this competition, you have to be at your best. You have to be ready, every action, every match. We’ve been working for this for months. We play our game and we did our best.
“Today’s result makes it difficult for us. But never say never. We have to believe in it. You never know what can happen.”
Club Brugge will take on Aston Villa on 12 March for the second leg of the tie.
In a related development, Super Eagles manager Eric Chelle included Raphael Onyedika in his 39-man provisional 2026 World Cup qualifiers squad.
The Super Eagles will take on Rwanda in Kigali on 21 March and will host Zimbabwe in Uyo four days later.
