Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, two clubs with proud European pedigrees, meet in the Europa League semifinals Thursday just one step away from their first continental final in decades.
English clubs dominated the European Cup, now known as the Champions League, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with two triumphs for Forest and one for Villa.
But the clubs – just 80 kilometres (50 miles) apart in the English Midlands – have had contrasting seasons as they prepare for the first leg Thursday.
Unai Emery’s Villa are on course for a return to Europe’s top club competition after a strong Premier League campaign.
Forest, by contrast, remain at risk of relegation, though the club have turned a corner under Vitor Pereira, who is their fourth manager during a chaotic campaign.
The club are unbeaten in eight games in all competitions, reaching a first European semifinal in 42 years.
A 5-0 demolition of Sunderland last week followed a 4-1 victory over Burnley, with goals suddenly flowing for a side that had been blunt under Nuno Espirito Santo, Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche.
“Everyone is scoring, which makes us happy,” said Pereira. “It’s a good feeling. We’re eight games unbeaten now, and it’s important to keep this mentality.”
Forest’s heyday came under Brian Clough, who masterminded back-to-back European Cups in 1979 and 1980, while Villa were continental champions two years later.
But both teams have been starved of success in the decades since, which have included spells in the lower tiers of English football.
Emery pedigree
Villa have flourished since Emery joined the club in 2022 and are favorites to end their 30-year wait for a major trophy, with Freiburg or Braga awaiting the winners in next month’s final in Istanbul.
Two years ago, Villa reached the semifinals of the UEFA Conference League in their first taste of European competition for 13 years.
Last season, they gave Paris Saint-Germain a scare before bowing out 5-4 on aggregate to the eventual winners in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
And Emery is no stranger to Europa League glory, having won the second-tier competition four times during his spells at Sevilla and Villarreal.
“I know how difficult it is to win a European trophy. European competition is very important to us and it’s given me so much in my career as a coach,” said the Spaniard.
“Now I’m trying to experience that with the players and supporters at Aston Villa.”
“Forest have a history in Europe as well, because they won the European Cup like Aston Villa, so it is something special for us and for them.”
Winning the Europa League would give Forest access to the Champions League for the first time since 1980, when they were the holders.
The dreams of a clutch of other Premier League clubs could depend on the performance of Emery’s men.
Should Villa win the Europa League and finish fifth, the sixth-placed team in the Premier League would qualify for the Champions League.
Forest host Villa in the first leg of the semifinal Thursday, with the second leg taking place a week later.
DAILYSABAH
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