Aston Villa secured a stunning 4-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest on Thursday night to book their place in the Europa League final for the first time in 44 years.
Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Villa produced a superb comeback performance at Villa Park as Ollie Watkins opened the scoring just before half-time before Emiliano Buendia calmly converted a second-half penalty.
Club captain John McGinn then capped a memorable evening with a late brace to complete Villa’s dominant display and seal a 4-1 aggregate victory from the all-English semi-final clash.
Aston Villa will now face SC Freiburg in the Europa League final in Istanbul on May 20 after the German side edged Braga 4-3 on aggregate to reach their first-ever European final.
Among the jubilant crowd at Villa Park was noted supporter Prince William, who celebrated alongside Villa fans as the club moved within one win of ending a 30-year wait for major silverware.
Villa are chasing their first trophy since lifting the League Cup in 1996 and their first continental crown since the 1982 European Cup Final, when Peter Withe’s famous goal defeated Bayern Munich.
It will be the first major final for Villa since their 2020 League Cup defeat to Manchester City, and Unai Emery’s men will head into the clash as favourites against a Freiburg side currently sitting seventh in the Bundesliga.
For manager Unai Emery, the occasion marks a sixth Europa League final appearance. Emery has previously won the competition three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal, while also finishing runner-up with Arsenal.
The Spaniard has transformed Villa since arriving in 2022, when the club was hovering just above the Premier League relegation zone. Villa are currently fifth in the league and remain in contention for Champions League qualification through a top-five finish or by winning the Europa League.
Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date
Open In Whatsapp
