ASTON VILLA are facing an uphill struggle to keep their UEFA Cup hopes alive after Peter Wibran scored a shock late equaliser for the part-timers of Helsinborgs at a stunned Villa Park.

Wibran silenced the 25,000 crowd 10 minutes from time with a close-range effort after Helsinborgs had most constant Villa pressure.

Tommy Johnson celebrated his recall to the Villa starting line-up by scoring the vital goal to give Brian Little a flying start to his first campaign as a manager in Europe.

But it was the only bright spot on an otherwise frustrating night for Villa, who were looking for a substantial lead to take to the Olympia Stadium in two weeks' time.

They lacked the imagination to break down Helsinborgs, who made life difficult for Villa by often placing 10 players behind the ball and relying on the odd counter-attack.

One such move led to Wibran's equaliser and now Little's men will have to be on their guard to make sure they avoid exiting European competition to Swedish opposition in the same way as Blackburn and Manchester United in the past two years.