Aston Villa faced Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final on April 15, 2025, with PSG holding a 3-1 lead from the first leg. Simultaneously, discussions centered around Unai Emery's strategic ambition to deploy Marcus Rashford and Ollie Watkins as a striker partnership, while PSG aimed to shake off their reputation as Champions League underperformers.

Paris Saint-Germain defeated Aston Villa in their Champions League quarter-final second leg, as reported by The Guardian on April 15, 2025. The match concluded with Aston Villa 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain (agg 2-5). Goals were scored by Hakimi (11'), Nuno Mendes (27') and an own goal by Pacho (34').

Meanwhile, Aston Villa manager Unai Emery is considering playing Marcus Rashford and Ollie Watkins together. According to The Athletic's Jacob Tan, Emery has indicated an eagerness to explore that possibility. "Ollie Watkins has returned and looks like a man on a mission to prove he is the best striker in the premier league. By the same token, marcus rashford has looked good when asked to play up top."

Contextually, PSG entered the match carrying the weight of past Champions League failures, needing to defend their first-leg advantage. Onefootball noted that PSG had a mixed record in knockout games after earning a first-leg lead, being eliminated in four out of nine such instances in the 'QSI era'.

Looking ahead, Aston Villa may need to navigate Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), potentially leading to player sales. However, the club will find a way to navigate around the PSR guidelines and be able to more-or-less operate as usual.