LONDON: Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, two clubs rich in European history, are one step from a first continental final in decades as they meet in the last four of the Europa League on Thursday.

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 50 miles (80 kilometres) apart in the English Midlands — have had contrasting seasons as they prepare for the first leg on 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 semi-final 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 favourites 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 semi-finals of the UEFA Conference League in their first taste of European competition for 13 years.

Last season they gave Paris St-Germain a scare before bowing out 5-4 on aggregate to the eventual winners in the quarter-finals 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.

Emery said he wanted to write a “new chapter” with Villa.

“We are going to try to use our experiences to try to get better in this one,” the Spaniard said at his pre-match press conference on Wednesday.

“But of course I know how difficult it is to win a semi-final, because it is 50/50 between both teams, and they have as well, good players, a good coa­ch, experienced coach in Europe.

“They have as well, I think their momentum, feeling confidence in the moment they are (in).”

“In football, everything you were doing before — maybe it’s fantastic, maybe not — but it’s done, and now is a new chapter, and I want to write a new chapter here.”

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.

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2026