Europa Conference League round of 16 second legs: Aston Villa, Fenerbahçe and Fiorentina progress

Aston Villa, Fenerbahçe and Fiorentina were three of the eight teams to book their places in the UEFA Europa Conference League quarter-finals on an exciting evening of drama.

UEFA.com rounds up the Thursday-night action.

Aston Villa 4-0 Ajax (agg: 4-0)

Ollie Watkins's headed opener – which came shortly before a knee injury forced him off – was the catalyst as Aston Villa comprehensively beat Ajax 4-0 to make the last eight. Leon Bailey, substitute Jhon Durán and Moussa Diaby got the other goals, all in the second half, with the visitors' Sivert Mannsverk sent off for two bookings.

Key stat: The result means Aston Villa are into the quarter-finals of a major UEFA competition for the first time in 26 years.

Fenerbahçe 0-1 Union SG (agg: 3-1)

Mathias Rasmussen's 69th-minute header set up a nervy finish, but Fenerbahçe did enough to progress to their first European quarter-final since the 2012/13 Europa League despite this home defeat by Union SG. The visitors had the better of the chances, and got their reward as Rasmussen rose highest to nod home from Loïc Lapoussin's teasing cross. The Belgian outfit continued to push, but Fenerbahçe defended resolutely to ensure an aggregate victory.

Key stat: This was the first time in their last 17 European home matches that Fenerbahçe failed to score.

Fiorentina 1-1 Maccabi Haifa (agg: 5-4)

Fiorentina secured their quarter-final spot after surviving some late Maccabi Haifa pressure. A cagey first half with little goalmouth action stood in stark contrast to the seven goals and one red card in last week's first leg, which had given Fiorentina their narrow advantage. Antonín Barák's fine header midway through the second half earned last year's beaten finalists a two-goal cushion, yet they were made to sweat as full time approached when Anan Khalaili equalised on the night. However, Fiorentina held on to progress to the next round.

Key stat: Fiorentina are unbeaten in their last nine UEFA competition matches (W5 D4).

Maccabi Tel-Aviv 1-6 Olympiacos (aet, agg: 5-7)

Olympiacos staged a memorable fightback to overturn a 4-1 first-leg deficit and advance to the quarters. Daniel Podence set the tone with a smart finish from the edge of the box as the visitors dominated the opening 45 minutes, and further goals by Kostas Fortounis and Ayoub El Kaabi levelled the tie on aggregate by half-time. Eran Zahavi restored Maccabi Tel Aviv's advantage from the penalty spot after the break but a stunning El Kaabi overhead took the tie into extra time, where close-range strikes from Stevan Jovetić and Youssef El-Arabi sealed a big win for the visitors.

Key stat: Prior to this fixture, Olympiacos had lost the first leg of a UEFA club competition tie at home on 12 previous occasions and had only gone on to win two of those ties.

Viktoria Plzeň 0-0 Servette (agg: 0-0 aet, Plzeň win 3-1 on pens)

Martin Jedlička saved penalties from Miroslav Stevanović and Yoan Severin in the shoot-out and Keigo Tsunemoto missed his effort to send Plzeň through after the tightest of ties. In the first half, Plzeň's Robin Hranáč had an attempt ruled offside and Pavel Šulc headed wide from close range before Jedlička made a fine diving stop to deny Gael Ondoua. The keeper then frustrated Miroslav Stevanović and Alexis Antunes to take the game to a nervy period of extra time.

Key stat: Plzeň have reached a UEFA competition quarter-final for the first time.

PAOK 5-1 Dinamo Zagreb (agg: 5-3)

A relentless first half helped PAOK overhaul a two-goal deficit to reach the quarter-finals. The Greek side were three up by the interval, with Abdul Rahman Baba and Brandon scoring headers either side of a Petar Sučić own goal. A shell-shocked Dinamo levelled the tie after the break through Arbër Hoxha, only for Konstantinos Koulierakis and an Andrija Živković penalty to seal a remarkable 5-1 win and PAOK's progress.

Key stat: PAOK have won five and drawn three of their last eight UEFA competition matches at home.

Club Brugge 3-0 Molde (agg: 4-2)

Brugge turned around a first-leg defeat to proceed to the quarter-finals after a stirring comeback at home to Molde. Andreas Skov Olsen opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time with a fine finish, and the Danish winger added a second on 48 minutes with a superb curling strike. Michał Skóraś finished the tie off as a contest by running from halfway and driving a low effort beyond the goalkeeper.

Key stat: Skov Olsen has now scored seven goals in the Europa Conference League this season (including qualifying).

LOSC Lille 1-1 Sturm Graz (agg: 4-1)

Lille eased into a first UEFA quarter-final as Tiago Santos's strike helped earn a home draw with Sturm Graz. The French side led when Santos fired home through bodies, only for Mika Biereth to flick on Gregory Wüthrich’s header to equalise before half-time. Goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaroš produced a string of second-half saves to keep Sturm level but they rarely threatened a fightback in the tie as Lille marched on to a landmark quarter-final.

Key stat: Lille are undefeated in Europe this season, winning six and drawing four fixtures.