Aston Villa fell short against Paris Saint-Germain in a gutsy showing in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday.
The Villans were without the likes of Ollie Watkins, Emi Martinez, Ezri Konsa, and Alejandro Garnacho against the Champions League victors.
But Unai Emery, facing his former employers, saw his side turn in an excellent display in European football's curtain raiser.
Villa made have been beaten 2-1 in Salzburg, but there was much to admire in a game where they actually outperformed Luis Enrique's side in terms of xG (2.13 to 1.03).
Brian Madjo, 17, made history by becoming the youngester goalscorer in the history of the Super Cup.
But another Villa youngster in the form of George Hemmings also caught the eye with a front-foot performance against the Ligue 1 giants.
Could George Hemmings fill Morgan Rogers void at Aston Villa?
Hemmings is himself only aged 19, but he put in a performance well beyond his years against PSG.
Villa's sale of Morgan Rogers to Chelsea in a £117million deal was obviously hugely disappointing.
Rogers was so influential in how Emery wanted to play, but Hemmings showed real signs that he could fill that void.
The way Hemmings flitted in from the left wing to pick up those dangerous pockets of space between midfield and attack was really reminscent of Rogers.
Jeff Stelling called Hemmings "absolutely outstanding" and "excellent" when speaking on talkSPORT 's breakfast show on Thursday.
And it was an extremely fair assessment of Hemmings, who had an 88 per cent successful pass rate in the opposition half, and finished the game with one key pass.
His ball carrying ability up against a star-studded PSG side was also extremely impressive.
He had 11 carries in total, with a total carrying distance of 125.7 metres, while his progressive carrying distance totalled 45.4m.
Hemmings' longest progressive carry totalled 27m, while he finished with two shots and missed one "big opportunity".
Rogers' shoes are extremely big to fill, and there had been talk of Hemmings going out on loan this season.
But on this evidence, Emery should consider using the teenager as part of his squad, because he looked pretty fearless against elite opposition.
Jeff Stelling not having 'grossly unfair' Brian Madjo narrative already at Aston Villa What did Unai Emery say about George Hemmings' performance?
Hemmings has already had some taste of first-team football at Villa.
Last season, he made a couple of appearances off the bench in the Premier League, and featured twice in the Europa League - once as a starter.
Emery reflected on that start in Europe's secondary competition, and said Hemmings looked far more confident in his talent on this occasion.
In quotes reported by the Birmingham Mail , Emery said: "Last season he played against Salzburg, but I needed to sub him in the first half.
"He was a little bit nervous, but it was his first experience playing like that.
"He played with more confidence today, and in the position we have worked on. Now is the time to stay consistent and demanding. Still a lot of work and matches to play."
What you don't want to do is put too much pressure on after a game that is essentially a glorified friendly, but Hemmings really staked his claim to be involved this season.
