Youri Tielemans says Aston Villa “don’t only want to participate” in the Champions League and are looking to “really make our mark” in their return to the competition.
Villa will play in Europe’s top club competition for the first time since 1983 when they face Young Boys in Bern on Tuesday.
“We achieved something really good last season and now we’re here playing Champions League,” the midfielder said in the pre-match news conference.
“We’re really excited to get going. There’s always been an ambitious plan before I signed and that’s why I bought into it and came to Aston Villa. We’ve had some really good performances last year and now we’re here and we’ll try to make the most of it.
“We don’t only want to participate in this, we want to really make our mark in this competition.
“We’ve got some really big games and tomorrow will be the start of that. With the new format every game is really important with the points system. We want to make the most of it and hopefully we can get a win here but it will be really difficult.”
Villa will be the sixth different team manager Unai Emery has managed in the Champions League and Tielemans believes the Spaniards’ experience will be key if they are to progress in the competition.
“Very important,” he added.
“He [Emery] has changed a fair bit since he’s been at the club and personally he’s improved me a lot as a player and as a man. I understand the game even better than before.
“We saw last year so many times how important he was with his tactical tweaks. He’s going to be massive for us.”
