Paris Saint-Germain vs Aston Villa facts

Aston Villa's first UEFA Champions League quarter-final kicks off at 2020 runners-up Paris Saint-Germain.

While the English club are in the last eight of the European Cup for the first time since exiting at this stage as holders in 1982/83, Paris have made it this far for the fourth time in six seasons, and have won their last three quarter-final ties.

Paris are facing Premier League opposition for the second round in succession having overcome Liverpool on penalties after a 1-1 aggregate draw in the last 16, when Villa beat Club Brugge 6-1 over two legs.

This is the sides' first meeting – the only one of this season's quarter-finals not to have been played before.

Form guide

Paris

Record vs English clubs: W10 D9 L14 F41 A47
Home record vs English clubs: W6 D5 L5

This is Paris' fifth game against an English club this season, and a third in succession. Beaten 1-0 at home by Liverpool in the round of 16 first leg, they won by the same scoreline at Anfield and ultimately went through 4-1 on penalties.

That was Paris' first knockout tie against a team from England since losing 1-4 on aggregate to Manchester City in the 2020/21 semi-finals – a third successive two-legged loss. Their overall record is now W4 L5.

The second-leg victory at Liverpool was only Paris' third in their last ten matches against English clubs, although they did also come from two goals down to beat Manchester City 4-2 at the Parc des Princes on Matchday 7. That ten-game run also features six defeats – including 2-0 at Arsenal on Matchday 2.

The win at Liverpool was only Paris' sixth in their last 20 matches against English sides, home and away (D4 L10); the defeat of City is one of only three in the last ten at home (D3 L4).

This is Paris's ninth appearance in the Champions League quarter-finals, where their record is W4 L4. Last season's defeat of Barcelona (2-3 h, 4-1 a) made it three successive aggregate victories.

This is Paris's 17th campaign in the Champions League proper, a new French record; they had previously been level with Lyon. They have featured every season since 2012/13, reaching the knockout stages in all 13 of those most recent campaigns; they lost 0-1 both away and at home to Borussia Dortmund in last season's semi-finals.

The Parisians have won 21 of their last 44 European matches (D8 L15), including six of the last seven (L1). Paris have been victorious in 50 of their last 81 home games (D20 L11), although the 0-1 first-leg defeat by Liverpool in this season's round of 16 was their tenth in their last 31 matches at the Parc des Princes and fourth in the last eight.

Aston Villa

Record vs French clubs: W3 D2 L4 F7 A9
Away record vs French clubs: W0 D2 L3

Villa have already lost in France this season, going down 1-0 at Monaco on Matchday 7. That means they have still never won away to a Ligue 1 team.

The Birmingham club beat LOSC Lille 4-3 on penalties in last season's UEFA Conference League quarter-finals after a 3-3 aggregate draw. That made their record in two-legged knockout ties against French clubs W3 L1.

Unai Emery's side were 2-1 winners in the home first leg against Lille – their only success in their last five games against Ligue 1 teams (D1 L3) and one of only three in their nine fixtures overall.

Villa's record in European Cup quarter-finals is W1 L1.

The Villans are taking part in the European Cup for the third time, and a first since 1982/83, when as holders they lost 5-2 on aggregate to eventual runners-up Juventus in the quarter-finals (1-2 h, 1-3 a).

Villa were involved in European competition for the first time since 2010/11 in 2023/24, losing 2-6 on aggregate to eventual champions Olympiacos in the Conference League semi-finals.

A 3-1 win at Club Brugge in this season's round of 16 first leg was Villa's fifth in their last 16 away European games; that run includes eight defeats.

Links and trivia

Emery was Paris coach between June 2016 and May 2018, winning the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue in both seasons and Ligue 1 in 2017/18. Marquinhos and Presnel Kimpembe were both in the Paris squad.

Marco Asensio joined Aston Villa on loan from Paris in January. He scored seven times in 47 appearances for the French club since joining from Real Madrid in 2023.

Lucas Digne – who was a Lille player from 2005 to 2013 – made 44 appearances in all competitions for Paris between 2013 and 2015, winning two league titles, one Coupe de France and two Coupes de la Ligue.

Have played together:
Achraf Hakimi & Marco Asensio (Real Madrid 2017.18)

Has played in England:
Vitinha (Wolverhampton Wanderers 2020/21 loan)

Have also played in France:
Youri Tielemans (Monaco 2017–19)
Diego Carlos (Nantes 2016–19)
Lucas Digne (LOSC Lille 2005–13, Paris Saint-Germain 2013–15)
Boubacar Kamara (Marseille 2005–22)
Amadou Onana (LOSC Lille 2021/22)
Ross Barkley (Nice 2022/23)

Born in the Paris suburbs, Axel Disasi joined Paris FC aged 16 in 2014, making his senior debut in December 2016. He also played for Reims (2016–20) and Monaco (2020–23) in his homeland.

International team-mates:
Lucas Hernández, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Bradley Barcola, Désiré Doué, Ousmane Dembélé & Lucas Digne, Axel Disasi, Boubacar Kamara (France)
Fabián Ruiz & Marco Asensio (Spain)

Emery and Luis Enrique met ten times as coaches between 2013 and 2017, the most famous the last, when Enrique's Barcelona defeated Emery's Paris 6-1 in the Champions League round of 16 second leg to overturn a 0-4 away defeat.

Emery's record against Enrique is W2 D1 L7. He was in charge of the Sevilla side that lost 5-4 to Barcelona in the 2015 UEFA Super Cup and 2-0 in the Copa del Rey final the following May.

Marcus Rashford's last-gasp penalty earned Manchester United a 3-1 win at Paris in the 2018/19 Champions League round of 16 and an aggregate victory on away goals.

Latest news

Paris

On Saturday a second-half goal from Désiré Doué earned a 1-0 home win against Angers that secured Paris' fourth successive Ligue 1 title with six games to spare.

Paris have won 11 league titles in the last 13 seasons and a record 13 overall.

Marquinhos is the first player to win ten Ligue 1 titles.

Paris are unbeaten in Ligue 1 after 28 matches this season (W23 D5), four short of Nantes' record for a single season set in 1994/95.

Doué has four goals in his last three Paris appearances. The 19-year-old scored twice in a 6-1 win at St-Étienne on 29 March and now has five goals and six assists in Ligue 1 this season.

The first-leg loss to Liverpool in the round of 16 is the only one of Paris' last 17 games in all competitions they have not won and is their sole defeat in 29 matches (W24 D4).

Paris have scored 19 goals in winning their last six games.

The French Cup holders reached this season's final by coming from two down to win 4-2 at Ligue 2 side Dunkerque on 1 April. Paris will play Reims in the final on 24 May.

Ousmane Dembélé has 24 goals in 20 Paris appearances in 2025 and 21 Ligue 1 goals this season, having managed three in 2023/24. He has scored 29 in all competitions in 2024/25; his previous best was 14 for Barcelona in 2018/19.

Dembélé also got France's second goal in a 2-0 second-leg defeat of Croatia in the UEFA Nations League quarter-finals on 23 March, a match that marked Doué's international debut as a substitute; the teenager converted in a penalty shoot-out victory.

The win at Saint-Étienne was Fabián Ruiz's 49th consecutive appearance without defeat in the French top flight, a new Paris record. He is now undefeated in 50 and surpassed the previous mark held by Marquinhos, who went 48 league matches unbeaten between 2014 and 2016.

Kang-in Lee has been out with an ankle injury since 20 March while Arnau Tenas has been sidelined by a shoulder problem.

Aston Villa

Unai Emery's side have won their last seven games in all competitions, including three in a row by a 3-0 margin before Saturday's 2-1 home victory against Nottingham Forest.

Morgan Rogers opened the scoring and has six goals and four assists in his last 14 appearances in all competitions.

Donyell Malen has scored in his last two games.

A 4-1 Premier League loss at Crystal Palace on 25 February is Villa's only reverse in 12 games in all competitions (W9 D2).

Seven of Villa's eight league losses this season have come away from home, the defeat at Palace the fourth by a three-goal margin.

The Birmingham club have, however, won their last four away matches in all competitions, scoring ten goals and conceding only one.

Villa set up an FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace with a 3-0 victory at Championship club Preston on 30 March.

Winter signing Marco Asensio has eight goals in his 11 Villa appearances while fellow new arrival Marcus Rashford has three in his last three outings.

Ross Barkley has not played since 10 January due to a calf injury.

Leon Bailey has a leg injury and has been sidelined since 10 March.