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• Mings mistake 'changed everything' as Villa bemoan penalty call that 'killed the game'

  Aston Villa bemoaned the controversial penalty decision that condemned them to a first Champions League defeat at Club Brugge on Wednesday.

  On their return to Europe's elite club competition, Villa won their first three matches without conceding, but that run was ended in a 1-0 reverse in Belgium.

  The decisive goal was highly contentious, however. Tyrone Mings was penalised for picking up a pass from Emiliano Martinez, apparently believing the Villa goalkeeper had not yet taken a goal-kick.

  That error was punished as Hans Vanaken converted the consequent penalty, and Villa could not recover from a moment that boss Unai Emery felt altered the shape of the game.

  "In the second half, the mistake changed everything," Emery said. "A team like [Brugge], they are playing at home, defensively strong, they then focus 100% to stop us. They were better than us."

  Mings' defensive colleague Ezri Konsa described his frustration at the incident, suggesting Mings would have been sent off had there been a genuine infringement.

  "It killed the game," Konsa said. "If it is a handball, deliberate, then he should get a second yellow.

  "He's on a yellow already, so why not send him off for that then? It killed the game.

  "But look, it happened, there's nothing we can do, we've just got to move on from it."

  Villa have now lost three consecutive games in all competitions, matching their worst such run under Emery. They face Premier League and Champions League leaders Liverpool next at Anfield.

• Malacia closing on Man Utd return, Maguire and Shaw progressing

  Tyrell Malacia is closing in on a return from injury while fellow Manchester United defenders Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw are making progress in their recoveries, Ruud van Nistelrooy has revealed. 

  Malacia has not featured for United since the final day of the 2022-23 season, missing the entirety of last campaign after undergoing knee surgery.

  The Netherlands international has recently returned to training, however, and interim head coach Ruud van Nistelrooy says he is almost ready to receive competitive minutes.

  "[All the injured players are] different cases, all of them," Van Nistelrooy said ahead of Thursday's Europa League clash with Greek giants PAOK.

  "Tyrell is the furthest along the road to recovery at the moment – he's been part of team training for a couple of weeks now, full in team training, no restrictions.

  "So it's good for him to plan game minutes, maybe in the Under-21s. We have to see."

  United have been forced to field Noussair Mazraoui or Diogo Dalot as makeshift left-backs this season, with Luke Shaw also yet to feature in 2024-25 due to a calf issue.

  Fellow England international Maguire, meanwhile, has been absent since limping out of a goalless draw at Aston Villa last month.

  Van Nistelrooy said of the duo: "Harry is still inside, working on his rehab."

  "Luke also does pitch work like he did today, and he's progressing there to also do partial team training, hopefully soon."

  After welcoming PAOK to Old Trafford on Thursday, United host Leicester City in the Premier League on Sunday, their last match before Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim takes the reins. 

• Romero injury 'nothing too serious' but Richarlison 'out for a while'

  Tottenham believe Cristian Romero has avoided serious injury, but Richarlison is set for a period on the sidelines after the pair limped out of Sunday's win against Aston Villa.

  Both Romero and Richarlison were substituted in the second half of a 4-1 victory at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

  Argentina World Cup winner Romero appeared to hurt his foot in a blow to a Spurs team already missing Micky van de Ven, while Richarlison was injured in creating the third goal for Dominic Solanke.

  Neither will feature for Tottenham at Galatasaray in the Europa League on Thursday, but the outlook beyond that is rather more positive for Romero.

  "From the weekend, obviously Richy unfortunately injured his hamstring," Ange Postecoglou said. "I'm still getting the final information, but I think he'll be out for a while.

  "Romero, I think, is nothing too serious, hopefully. Hopefully, he still has a chance for the weekend [against Ipswich Town]."

  Providing a further update on his squad for the Galatasaray match, Postecoglou said: "Timo Werner has been carrying a bit of a groin complaint, which is still there, so he didn't travel, and Mikey Moore picked up a bit of a virus yesterday, so we've left him at home as well.

  "I think everyone else who's fit and eligible is here."

  Given their injuries, a trip to a talented Galatasaray side might be considered daunting, but Postecoglou is relishing it.

  "We're looking forward to it," he said. "It's a fantastic stadium, the supporters create an unbelievable atmosphere here, they love the big European nights.

  "They're a very, very good team. It's exactly the kind of games you want to be involved in in Europe. Whether you're young, you're old, irrespective of the role you have, you look forward to it."