Clinical Aston Villa outclass Freiburg to lift Europa League trophy

Tielemans opened the scoring for Villa after 41 minutes

Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers celebrates scoring their third goal with Ollie Watkins. REUTERS

Aston Villa cruised to a 3-0 victory over Freiburg to lift the Europa League trophy on Wednesday, dismantling their German opponents with a clinical attacking display that never left the outcome in doubt.

Youri Tielemans opened the scoring for Aston Villa after 41 minutes, striking home a crisp low volley from a Morgan Rogers corner. The English side doubled their lead in first-half stoppage time when captain John McGinn won possession to set up Emiliano Buendia, who curled a stunning effort into the top corner from the edge of the box.

Rogers added a third in the 58th minute, poking home at the near post from a Buendia cross following a slick passing move to effectively seal the result and trigger early celebrations for Unai Emery's side.

The victory secured a major European trophy for Villa, evoking memories of their 1982 European Cup triumph and marking the club's first major silverware since winning the English League Cup in 1996.