Painful memories travel with Villa coach Unai Emery as he returns to PSG in Champions League

PARIS (AP) — When Aston Villa coach Unai Emery returns to Parc des Princes for the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, it may stir up some difficult memories for him.

In contrast, Villa's on-loan forward Marcus Rashford will doubtless recall one of his happiest soccer experiences.

For Villa defender Lucas Digne and attacking midfielder Marco Asensio, the trip could be a case of mixed feelings.

Emery was PSG's coach for one of the biggest humiliations in Champions League history.

That was eight years ago, when PSG faced Barcelona in the Round of 16 and became the first team in Champions League history to throw away a 4-0 lead from the first leg, losing 6-1 in the return.

PSG then lost the Ligue 1 title to Kylian Mbappé's Monaco.

A few months later, PSG spent 422 million euros (then $456 million) during the offseason to buy Neymar from Barcelona and Mbappé in a stunning double swoop.

But even they could not save Emery.

He left at the end of the following season after two difficult years during which PSG went out twice in the last 16 of the Champions League, but he also made his mark as a coach willing to stand up to player power.

“It was a difficult time,” Emery said. “For the team to adapt to me and for me to adapt to the team.”

Villa seems to have adapted very well to his methods. The Birmingham-based club is on a seven-game winning run heading into its first quarterfinal in the competition since 1983.

Emery, who has won the Europa League a record four times as a coach, guided unheralded Villarreal to the Champions League semifinals in 2022.

The season after Emery's departure, PSG experienced another Champions League blow.

On that occasion, it was Rashford who dealt it.

He scored a penalty deep into stoppage-time as an injury-hit Manchester United knocked out PSG in the last 16 on away goals, winning 3-1 after losing the first leg 2-0.

The defeat infuriated Thomas Tuchel, who was hired after Emery left. Tuchel said he couldn't understand why some of his players arrived late for the pre-match preparations.

PSG's Qatari owners QSI were preparing for a third season at the helm of the club with new coach Laurent Blanc, and he signed Digne from French rival Lille for 15 million euros (then $16.2 million).

It was a big fee for an unproven 20-year-old defender, but the quick and skillful Digne was impressive at times with his performances at left back.

However, he was unable to hold down a regular place and, after being loaned to Roma, he joined Barcelona in 2016.

His transition to the Premier League, first to Everton and then Villa four years ago, saw him become a consistent and respected Premier League defender.

The 31-year-old Digne recently reached 50 caps for France.

Emery sensed an opportunity during the winter transfer window and got Asensio on loan from PSG until the end of the season.

The 29-year-old Spaniard was not getting many opportunities in PSG coach Luis Enrique's revamped attack.

But he immediately made his mark at Villa, enhancing his reputation as a scoring super-sub.

Heading into Wednesday's game in Paris, Asensio had scored eight goals in 11 games, including three in the Round of 16 against Club Brugge.

His scoring prowess, which was somewhat stifled at PSG, has re-emerged at Villa. But it will not be a surprise to those who watched Asensio earlier in his career with Real Madrid.

As a strong-running attacking midfielder with a superb first touch and a penchant for long-distance shooting, he netted 61 goals in 286 games and won the Champions League three times, scoring in the 2017 final against Juventus.

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Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford, center right, celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game with teammate Marco Asensio during the English FA Cup quarter final soccer match at Deepdale, Preston, England, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Martin Rickett/PA via AP)

FILE -PSG's Lucas Digne control the ball during his French League one soccer match between Toulouse FC at the Parc des Princes stadium, in Paris, France, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon, File)

FILE - PSG's Marco Asensio celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the French League 1 soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Montpellier at the Parc des Princes in Paris, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)

FILE - ManU's Marcus Rashford , bottom, celebrates after scoring his side's third goalduring the Champions League round of 16, second leg soccer match between Paris Saint Germain and Manchester United at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, France, Wednesday, March. 6, 2019. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File)

FILE - PSG head coach Unai Emery reacts at the end of the Champions League round of 16, second leg soccer match between FC Barcelona and Paris Saint Germain at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday March 8, 2017. Barcelona won the match 6-1 (6-5 on aggregate). (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)