Emery the mastermind

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: VILLA HAND BAYERN FIRST GROUP LOSS SINCE 2017

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Bayern Munich had not lost a Champions League group game since 2017 until a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Wednesday that hinted at a new era of European glory for the English side.

Villa relived the club's greatest ever night, when they beat Bayern to lift the European Cup in 1982, in their first home match at the continent's elite level for 41 years.

The Birmingham club's fortunes have been transformed in less than two years since Unai Emery took charge, catapulting Villa from battling relegation at the bottom of the Premier League to finishing in the top four last season.

Now two games into their first ever experience since the European Cup was rebranded to the Champions League, they are one of just seven sides with maximum points.