Aston Villa

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Aston Villa's draw is complete - Unai Emery's side now know the eight sides they will be meeting in the Champions League's 36-club league phase.

The teams were seeded into four pots based on their results in Uefa competitions over the past five years, with pot one being the highest-ranked and pot four being the lowest-ranked.

Each club has been drawn against two teams from each of the four pots, but they can only play a maximum of two teams from one country and they cannot play against a team from their domestic league.

The Villans will face: Paris St-Germain (H), Barcelona (A), Borussia Dortmund (H), Club Brugge (A), Fenerbahce (H), Galatasaray (A), Viking (H), Slavia Prague (A).

The order of those fixtures will be announced by Uefa in due course.

League phase dates:

Matchday 1: 8-10 September 2026

Matchday 2: 13-14 October 2026

Matchday 3: 20-21 October 2026

Matchday 4: 3-4 November 2026

Matchday 5: 24-25 November 2026

Matchday 6: 8-9 December 2026

Matchday 7: 19-20 January 2027

Matchday 8: 27 January 2027

Knockout phase dates:

Knockout phase play-offs: 16-17 and 23-24 February 2027

Round of 16: 9-10 and 16-17 March 2027

Quarter-finals: 6-7 and 13-14 April 2027

Semi-finals: 27-28 April and 4-5 May 2027

Final: 5 June 2027, Madrid

See how the rest of the league phase draw panned out

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

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If Senegal international Nicolas Jackson agrees personal terms and completes the switch to Aston Villa from Chelsea, his arrival is expected to trigger Ollie Watkins' move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal.

A deal worth about £51m will see the 30-year-old leave Villa Park, having joined the club from Brentford in 2020 and become their record Premier League goalscorer with 108 top-flight goals.

Villa had been preparing to sell Watkins, but they needed to replace him before sanctioning a move. He missed Sunday's 4-0 defeat at Brighton, with boss Unai Emery saying it was up to him and his agent to explain why.

The Jackson move remains subject to personal terms being agreed but negotiations are at an advanced stage, with Jackson expected to reunite with Emery having played under him at Villarreal.

He would become the latest player in Villa's summer rebuild, following the arrivals of record-buy Johan Manzambi, midfielder Joao Gomes, goalkeeper Zion Suzuki and defender Matteo Ruggeri.

However, there has also been significant movement out of the club and Watkins leaving would mean they have sold five of the starting XI who won the Europa League in May.

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

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Ipswich are progressing with a move to take Tammy Abraham on loan from Aston Villa.

The striker is poised to leave Villa Park with Chelsea forward Nicolas Jackson closing in on a £65m move to the West Midlands side.

That would also mean Ollie Watkins is expected to join Al-Hilal for about £51m as Villa completely revamp their forward line.

Villa had been open to letting Abraham go despite only signing him from Besiktas for £18.25m in January.

Abraham was happy at Villa and preparing to fight for his place, but is now likely to move to Portman Road. It is due to be a straight loan, with no option or obligation for Ipswich to buy the 28-year-old.

He had scored three goals in 17 appearances for Villa, having previously played for them on loan from Chelsea to help them back into the Premier League in 2018-19.

Ipswich have spent about £150m on 12 summer signings since returning to the Premier League.

Abraham will offer support and competition to £24m record signing Emersonn after his arrival from Toulouse this summer.

The Brazilian scored on his debut as Ipswich beat Sunderland 2-1 in their top-flight opener on Saturday.

Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal have agreed a deal of about £50m to sign Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins. (Fabrizio Romano, external)

Villa have asked about West Ham and France defender Jean-Clair Todibo, 26, as they search for a centre-back. (Mail, external)

Villa target Rafael Leao is close to agreeing a move from AC Milan, with Galatasaray set to pay about £38m for the 27-year-old Portugal winger. (Corriere dello Sport - in Italian, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Jonty Colman
BBC Sport journalist

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The league phase draw for the 2026-27 Champions League takes place at 17:00 BST in Monaco.

A total of 36 teams will take part in the league phase and each team will face eight different teams once, with four home matches and four away matches.

For the draw, the 36 teams will be placed into four pots, with one being the highest-ranked and four being the lowest. The pot placements are based on the clubs' Uefa club coefficient ranking from the five-season period ending at the conclusion of 2025-26.

Each team will face two teams from each of the four pots and cannot face a team from the same country as themselves.

The teams who finish in the top eight will qualify for the last 16. Those between ninth and 24th will enter the play-off knockout round. The 12 teams ranked between 25th and 36th will exit the competition when the league phase is concluded.

Premier League clubs Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal all feature in pot one alongside back-to-back Champions League winners Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.

Aston Villa and Manchester United both return to the Champions League this season after not featuring last term. They are in pot two with Borussia Dortmund, Roma, Sporting, Porto, Club Brugge, Real Betis and PSV Eindhoven.

• Read more about the draw

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The draw for the Carabao Cup third round has been made. Here is a list of all the ties involving Premier League teams in the order they were drawn.

The matches will be played in the weeks commencing September 7 and September 14.

• Crystal Palace v Middlesbrough

• Manchester United v Brighton

• Manchester City v Norwich City

• Sunderland v Hull City

• Ipswich Town v Arsenal

• Coventry City v Aston Villa

• Bournemouth v Lincoln City

• Liverpool v Tottenham

• Chelsea or Luton Town v Leeds

• Millwall v Newcastle United

• Everton v Wolves

• Reading v Brentford

• West Ham v Fulham or AFC Wimbledon

Read more and see the full draw

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We asked for your thoughts on the news that Chelsea are considering a move for Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.

Here are some of your comments:

Arthur: Good to get him off the payroll and bank some cash. Not good if his performances elevate Chelsea above Villa in league and cups.

Prit: Surely someone at Aston Villa must realise that by selling the family silver to our rivals, we are making them stronger and us weaker. I don't want Emi Martinez to go, he is a world class goalkeeper and he is Aston Villa's best goalkeeper since the late, great Jimmy Rimmer. Suzuki may turn out to be a legend at Villa, but at this stage, we simply do not know. We need to mitigate any risk and keep Martinez, at least until January.

Matt: We expected Emi to go last summer and he didn't. He clearly wants out with all the other stars. Getting his wages off the books would be good business, but Suzuki is undoubtedly a downgrade in terms of quality. I think "downgrade" might be the theme of our season.

Mark: I'm loath to see Martinez move to another Premier League club - but equally the club can't keep two high-earning keepers on the wage bill for long, and Martinez has been quite clear he wants to move on. Reluctantly, sell...

Elliot: Think a realistic fee would be circa £10m and as sorry as I'll be to see him go, not having his wages will be a bonus. There is part of me thinking regardless of age he's one of the best goalkeepers in the world so should be worth a small fortune as he's still got a good few years in him yet.

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea are considering a move for Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez after making contact with the Argentina international's representatives.

With Zion Suzuki joining last week, do you expect Martinez to leave before the end of the transfer window? And what would represent good value if Villa were to sell Martinez?

Get in touch with your views

Aston Villa have made an offer for Crystal Palace and France striker Jean-Philippe Mateta, 29, although it falls well below the London club's valuation. (Athletic - subscription required), external

Villa are also on the verge of agreeing a 70m euros (£59.8m) deal to sign Chelsea and Senegal striker Nicolas Jackson, 25. (Foot Mercato - in French), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Jonty Colman
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

The third-round draw for the 2026-27 Carabao Cup will take place on Wednesday, 26 August following the conclusion of Preston North End vs Everton.

Nine Premier League clubs taking part in European football join the 23 first-round winners from across the English Football League.

Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Liverpool, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Brighton and Crystal Palace will enter the competition at this stage, as the top eight Premier League clubs from the 2025-26 season plus Crystal Palace as Conference League winners.

It will be broadcast live on Sky Sports following the conclusion of the third round tie between Preston North End and Everton, kicking off at 20:00 BST.

Unlike the opening two rounds of the competition, the third round draw is not regionalised.

However, before the match at Deepdale there will be a pre-draw determining which of the Champions League and Europa League clubs will play at home or away in round three.

In order to avoid potential scheduling issues, the eight Champions League and Europa League clubs cannot be drawn against each other in round three.

When the draw takes place, the first eight fixtures decided are the ones involving clubs in the Champions League and Europa League. The remainder of the draw will be an open draw as usual.

Due to clashes with opening weeks of the Champions League and Europa League seasons, the third round will be played across two different weeks. They are the weeks commencing Monday, 7 and Monday, 14 September, 2026.

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

What don't Aston Villa need after a raft of star departures this summer?

Ollie Watkins' transfer saga, with Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal trying to sign the striker, leaves Villa looking for a likely replacement. Chelsea's Nicolas Jackson is a target.

A winger is also on the agenda, while they need a defender after Ezri Konsa's move to Arsenal, and have opened talks for Club Brugge central defender Joel Ordonez after bids for Southampton centre-back Taylor Harwood-Bellis were rejected.

Amy Finley, Aston Villa fan

It is clear Villa desperately require a striker more than anything right now.

Although I massively rate Victor Lindelof and Pau Torres, the display against Brighton has worried me slightly. Therefore, I would welcome another centre-back as well.

It looks like we will be OK in midfield once Johan Manzambi is fit and with the addition of Leon Goretzka.

What business do you think still needs to get done before 23:00 BST on 1 September?

Get in touch with your views here

Another transfer window, means more transfer drama.

This time it is Ollie Watkins' name which is in the spotlight.

On BBC Sounds' Monday Night Club, former Premier League midfielder Andros Townsend said he could "understand" why Watkins may want to pursue a move to Saudi Arabia.

Townsend said: "He's pushing on in age. He potentially has a huge offer from Saudi Arabia. Reading between the lines, you can understand from the player's point of view why he might actually want to pursue this offer."

Since Watkins' £28m record arrival at Villa Park in 2020, the English forward has proved to be an integral piece of business in Villa improving their fortunes on the pitch.

However, the 30-year-old's exclusion from the matchday squad against Brighton has led to fans thinking Watkins' Villa career may be coming to an end.

Former Villa striker, Chris Sutton said: "It seems to me that a lot of Villa fans will feel that Ollie Watkins has thrown his manager under the bus.

"They needed him in that moment. He's under contract and if he's fit he should play. He chose not to play."

For club and country last season, Watkins featured in 61 games and scored 23 goals in all competitions.

However, his days in the top-flight may now be numbered as Al-Hilal target the former Brentford man.

"Will he get that opportunity again? I think he feels that if I let this offer go... It may not come again," said Townsend.

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

As Ollie Watkins continues to be linked to Saudi Pro League side, Al-Hilal, many Aston Villa fans will wonder why this could turn their centre forward's head.

Saudi football expert Mohamed Qutob told Radio WM that the Saudi side are in the market to replace five-time Champions League winner, Karim Benzema.

"They're a little disappointed with their main man. They want a replacement and Ollie Watkins is top of the list," said Qutob.

"What we also know is the Saudis have plenty of money. If they really, really need Ollie, they might be able to match the valuation after all."

One English forward who was tempted to join the Saudi Pro League was Ivan Toney, who has gone on to win back-to-back Asian Champions League titles with Al-Ahli, whilst also still being called up to Thomas Tuchel's England squad.

Qutob added: "Al Hilal is desperately in need for a number nine. They have been chasing so many names over the last couple for seasons."

The financial lure of joining Al-Hilal would lead to Watkins being offered "a minimum of £20m a year" with the wage being classed as tax-free.

"He would be training under Simone Inzaghi, a world-class manager, playing alongside some top players," said Qutob. "It is a strong squad and a player of his ability and instincts in front of goal can add so much to the squad."

Listen to more on Aston Villa on BBC Sounds

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa have been here before.

Last year, it was Emi Martinez looking to leave for Manchester United. When asked about the Argentina goalkeeper's absence from last season's opening league match against Crystal Palace, head coach Unai Emery just repeated replacement Marco Bizot's name several times.

Twelve months on, for their Premier League opener at Brighton on Sunday, Ollie Watkins was the name to make Emery bristle.

"This question is for him. I can answer only with my silence," he said, when asked why the striker was not included.

Al-Hilal, who have offered close to £40m, are not near to Aston Villa's asking price. As next Tuesday's transfer deadline nears, Villa will play hardball for their all-time record Premier League goalscorer.

A deal is still believed to be some way off, even if Emery revealed last week the striker could leave.

Al-Hilal, who signed Crysensio Summerville from West Ham in July, are likely to need to move one of their overseas players to make room for Watkins, despite loaning Darwin Nunez to Diriyah last week, so there are other moving parts in the deal.

Watkins has been training on his own, having returned from an extended break following the World Cup and is understood to have made his feelings clear to the Villa hierarchy about moving.

There have been no public comments from Watkins or his representatives but he is understood to be open to the move.

Another unanswered question is whether Villa see the Saudi money for a striker turning 31 in December - and who had been in and out of Emery's team last season - as a good deal.

Read more on the Watkins transfer

Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

Image source, Getty Images

The season has started with a bang. With so many new coaches and major squad upheavals, I expected the unexpected and wasn't disappointed.

Hull City seeing off Manchester United raised the most eyebrows. Remember, United ended last season impressively and their hosts just about squeezed up from the Championship, via the play-offs. These are early days and Michael Carrick's side will improve, so need to panic yet. As for Hull, their performance hinted at something else.

Last season Brentford, Brighton and Bournemouth didn't have the slightest hint of an inferiority complex when facing the super-clubs. The Tigers have started in the same style and I suspect others have now seen the light and will follow their lead.

Many are now embracing the idea of chaos, following the control-based dogma that held sway for so long. Some suggest this is "Kloppism" eclipsing the Guardiola doctrine. This is a bit simplistic but there is change in the air and it is being helped by the recent rule changes.

The game is speeding up, encouraging a quicker, more open style that lends itself to this organised chaos. It's early days, but already a pattern appears set for the season; reputations might count for little when up against hungry, youthful, fearless opponents.

Spurs and Aston Villa are seen as "big" clubs but size doesn't matter when confronted by a hunger, desire to work and the ensuing mayhem.

Just look at the way Brentford and Brighton closed both of them down at the weekend; Manchester City were within six minutes of losing to Bournemouth; Liverpool were seconds away from losing to Newcastle, a team supposedly gutted of quality and experience after those brutal summer sales.

Pat Nevin writes weekly in the Football Extra newsletter. If you're outside the UK and would like to receive it, sign up here.