Aston Villa produced a stunning second-half comeback to extend their seven-match winning run at home in Europe, overturning a two-goal deficit to defeat Red Bull Salzburg 3-2 and secure a top-two finish in the UEFA Europa League league phase.

Despite having little more than pride and positioning to play for, Villa began at a blistering pace. Ollie Watkins and Harvey Elliott forced Alexander Schlager into a sharp double save inside the opening 30 seconds, setting the tone for an energetic start.

The hosts largely controlled proceedings early on, but they were indebted to Emiliano Martínez for keeping the scores level. The Argentine denied Soumaila Diabaté from distance before producing another fine stop to thwart Karim Konaté on the rebound.

As the tempo dipped, Salzburg grew in confidence and capitalised on a defensive lapse to take the lead. Tyrone Mings hesitated while attempting to play back to his goalkeeper, allowing Edmund Baidoo to steal possession and square for Konaté, who tapped into an empty net despite Victor Lindelöf’s recovery attempt.

Salzburg remained on top for the rest of the first half and could have doubled their advantage before the interval, with Baidoo testing Martínez late on.

The visitors needed little time after the restart to extend their lead. Kerim Alajbegović danced past several challenges before drilling a low cross toward the near post, where substitute Moussa Yeo brilliantly backheeled the ball into the net.

Villa, however, soon found their rhythm and pulled a goal back through a flowing move involving Emiliano Buendía and Morgan Rogers. The pair combined neatly, with Rogers finishing confidently inside the near post.

Known this season for their ability to recover from losing positions, Villa once again demonstrated their resilience. Matty Cash delivered a teasing inswinging cross that was met by Mings, who redeemed his earlier error by heading home the equaliser.

With momentum firmly on their side, Villa completed the turnaround in the closing stages. Young substitutes combined brilliantly as Kadan Young drove into the box and squared for Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba, who coolly side-footed past Schlager on his European debut.

Although Salzburg had dominated much of the contest before Villa’s revival, consolation came in knowing that even victory would not have been enough to secure them a play-off place.

For Villa, the victory extended their unbeaten home run in Europe to 10 matches and sealed second place in the league phase, with seven wins from eight outings.