Unai Emery opted for youth and experience in equal measure when he named his Aston Villa side for the UEFA Super Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain in Salzburg. As reported by Sports Mole on 12 August, seventeen-year-old Brian Maduo was handed a starting role after recently being cleared to play competitive football for the club.
Academy graduate George Hemmings also earned a place in the eleven, operating behind the striker as a number ten. John McGinn recovered from a knee problem sustained in a pre-season friendly to take up a position on the right flank, joining new arrival Joao Gomes and Boubacar Kamara, who had returned from a serious knee injury, in the middle of the park.
Victor Lindelof partnered Pau Torres at centre-back, with Ezri Konsa among those unavailable because of deep runs at the World Cup with their national teams. Bizot started in goal behind a back line completed by Matty Cash and Ian Maatsen, while Emiliano Buendia rounded out the attacking selections.
Luis Enrique named a strong PSG side featuring nine players who had started the 2026 Champions League final. Maghnes Akliouche and Warren Zaire-Emery were the fresh additions to that group, with Akliouche deployed on the wing and Desire Doue leading the line as Ousmane Dembele began on the bench.
The match carried extra intrigue for Villa supporters given the presence of Lucas Digne among the Paris Saint-Germain substitutes. The full-back had completed a move to the French capital only days earlier, making an immediate return to face his former employers in a major European showpiece.
