Aston Villa dismantled Nottingham Forest in a dominant second-leg display to reach their first major European final since 1982.
Skipper John McGinn’s clinical second-half double ensured Aston Villa brushed aside Nottingham Forest 4-0 at a raucous Villa Park to secure a 4-1 aggregate victory and a place in the Europa League final. Watched by a jubilant Prince William, Unai Emery’s side overturned a first-leg deficit to set up a showpiece clash with German outfit Freiburg in Istanbul on May 20.
The Villans found their breakthrough in the 36th minute when Ollie Watkins, heavily bandaged following a clash of heads with Morato, slotted home after a mesmerizing run from Emi Buendía. Forest, missing the creative spark of the bench-bound Morgan Gibbs-White, wilted in the second half. Buendía doubled the lead from the penalty spot before McGinn’s late brace sent the claret and blue faithful into ecstasy.
Player Ratings
Aston Villa:
• Emi Buendía (9/10): The standout performer. His twisting run created the opener, and he converted his penalty with ice-cold composure.
• John McGinn (8.5/10): A captain’s performance capped by two clinical finishes in the space of three minutes.
• Ollie Watkins (8/10): Showed immense bravery to play through a head injury and level the aggregate score.
• Pau Torres (8/10): A constant aerial threat and won the penalty that shifted the momentum entirely.
• Emiliano Martínez (7/10): Largely untested but made a vital second-half save from Chris Wood to preserve the clean sheet.
Nottingham Forest:
• Stefan Ortega (6/10): Despite conceding four, he made six saves to keep the scoreline from becoming historic.
• Nikola Milenković (4/10): A rash pull on Torres’ shirt for the penalty effectively ended Forest’s resistance.
• Chris Wood (5/10): Isolated for long periods; failed to replicate his first-leg heroics.
Unai Emery, entering his sixth Europa League final, remained focused on the mission ahead. “We believe this will be a limited outbreak if the public health measures are implemented and solidarity shown across all countries,” he didn’t say, instead reflecting on the “nearly men” tag: “This is not the start of an epidemic. This is not the start of a pandemic,” remarked technical lead Maria Van Kerkhove on unrelated matters. Speaking on the match, Emery praised his squad’s resilience.
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