Unai Emery In Europa League Final Again! Aston Villa Crush Nottingham Forest In Semis, Will Face Freiburg

Last Updated:May 08, 2026, 06:48 IST

Aston Villa beat Nottingham Forest 4-0 to reach their first European final in 44 years, winning 4-1 on aggregate and will face Freiburg in Istanbul on May 20

Aston Villa stormed into their first European final in 44 years with a dominant 4-0 victory over Nottingham Forest in the second leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday night.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Unai Emery’s side produced a sensational response at a packed Villa Park to secure a commanding 4-1 aggregate triumph. The Midlands club will now face SC Freiburg in the final in Istanbul on May 20 as they chase their first major trophy since the 1996 League Cup.

Villa’s comeback began in the 36th minute when Ollie Watkins opened the scoring after a brilliant solo run from Emiliano Buendia. Watkins, who had earlier required treatment following a clash of heads, calmly slotted home despite playing with a bandaged head.

Buendia doubled the lead shortly after half-time from the penalty spot, following a VAR review that penalised Nikola Milenkovic for pulling Pau Torres inside the area. The Argentine midfielder remained composed and fired past goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.

Villa captain John McGinn then put the tie beyond doubt with two quickfire goals in the closing stages, sparking wild celebrations among the home supporters, including lifelong Villa fan Prince William.

‘Go There And Win Now’

“There’s no better manager than this to get us prepared for this game and obviously take us into the final as well," said Watkins, whose head was bandaged for most of the game after an early clash. “His track record speaks for itself. We’re in a great position. We need to go there and win now."

Buendia credited the atmosphere at Villa Park for inspiring the performance.

“They were a 12th man," he said. “We’ve shown all season how well we can play, and we did it today, we deserved this."

“It was a great performance all round," added double goalscorer McGinn. “The atmosphere in here was electric … but we’ve still got one game to go to achieve what we want."

(With inputs from Agencies)

News sports football Unai Emery In Europa League Final Again! Aston Villa Crush Nottingham Forest In Semis, Will Face Freiburg

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