Aston Villa are a game away from their first major silverware since the League Cup in 1996

Unai Emery walked into Villa Park and declared he was at Aston Villa to win trophies.

In his first press conference in November 2022 the Spaniard's ambition was clear. It has taken a little over three years but Villa are nearly there.

In front of a raucous and triumphant Villa Park on Thursday, the club reached the Europa League final with a crushing win over Nottingham Forest.

Germany's Freiburg await in Istanbul on 20 May but few would bet against Emery adding a fifth Europa League trophy to his collection.

Villa are a game away from their first major silverware for three decades and a first European trophy in 44 years as they look to try to stand with the club's European champions of 1982.

The commentary of Peter Withe's winning goal against Bayern Munich in Rotterdam hangs above the Doug Ellis Stand.

In two weeks, Villa may need another banner if they win in Turkey, which would also earn a Champions League return regardless of whether they finish in the Premier League's top five.

John McGinn's late double put the gloss on a dominant performance that was too much for Forest to match, or even cope with.

Boss Vitor Pereira was able to include Morgan Gibbs-White, Ibrahim Sangare and Murillo on the bench but none were fit and only defender Murillo made it on to the pitch and that just for two minutes with the game lost.

But even with that trio fully available, the visitors might have struggled to contain a rampant Villa, who only increased the tempo throughout the match.

Ollie Watkins' opener and Emi Buendia's penalty put Villa ahead on the night and then in the tie. After that there was never any doubt in a performance that even gained Royal approval from a fan – Prince William visiting the dressing room post match to offer congratulations

"They [the players] were so focused, they were aware about the momentum," said Emery. "We planned before emotionally and how we were playing the match. It was the only match we played with this circumstances.

"The possibility to get to a final was the only moment we've had here. We were confident about how the supporters were here and creating this atmosphere."

It will be Emery's sixth Europa League final with four wins – a record – and one defeat, which came against Chelsea while Arsenal manager in 2019.

"Europe is very important," he said. "In my first press conference here I was speaking about Europe, I was speaking about trophies as well, but it's very difficult. It's difficult to get trophies.

"In Europe, it's difficult to be consistent like we are. It's through our hard work and the players must set the standards we want to achieve.

"Today the players [gave] their best, collectively and individually."

Only Giovanni Trapattoni, with seven, has reached more major finals in European competition than Emery.

"There's no better manager than this to get us prepared for this game and take us into the final. His track record speaks for itself," Watkins told TNT.

Watkins himself admitted changes in the squad are expected this summer and so this current run represents the last chance to achieve something together.

Emery has wrung everything out of his players. Several like Watkins, Ezri Konsa, Matty Cash and Morgan Rogers came to Villa from the Championship, and there is an internal recognition the squad needs to be revamped.

Skipper McGinn also recognises the players have a final chance to be compared to past heroes like European Cup-winning captain Dennis Mortimer and Paul McGrath who lifted the 1994 and 1996 League Cups.

He told TNT: "We've had low moments, definitely. It's a demanding club to play for, but when it's like this, Villa Park is electric. What we've done in the last few years is exceptional.

"I felt it this morning, but now it is about embracing it and trying to be legends. You see the guys from 1982, you see the cup winners in the 90's.

"It's a historic club and it's been a long time without success. There's been massive lows, like relegation and it has built itself back up. It's such a proud football club, it deserves success and hopefully we can be the group to do it."

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Emi Buendia scored the penalty after Nikola Milenkovic tugged Pau Torres in the box

Emi Buendia was not expected to still be at Aston Villa by now.

Having been loaned out to Bayer Leverkusen in the second half of last season, making just three Bundesliga starts, his Villa career looked over.

A then-record signing from Norwich in a deal rising to £38m in 2021, the playmaker struggled to live up to the billing and scored just four goals in 38 games in his debut season.

A serious knee injury forced him to miss the whole of 2023-24 and left him in the shadows as his team-mates qualified for the Champions League.

Villa were ready to sell last summer as they looked to comply with Profit and Sustainability rules – but ultimately decided to keep the 29-year-old.

He has been one of Emery's most dependable players this season, scoring 10 goals, and is one of the reasons Harvey Elliott's loan move from Liverpool has failed.

"I took responsibility," he told TNT of the penalty." "It was one of the most decisive penalties for the club in recent years, but I didn't feel pressure. I felt calm, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

"We showed the whole season how good we can play. The result is amazing and I think we deserve it.

"I think the prestige to win a trophy, with the history this club has – it would be amazing. The fans really want this trophy for us, and we will try."

Former Villa striker Dion Dublin gave Buendia praise and feels he offers something different.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Buendia goes below the radar. He plays good passes, weight of pass is good. His finishing is good.

"He's nasty too, he doesn't mind putting a foot in. He is one of those players Villa need in their side in order to achieve things. He doesn't want the plaudits, he just wants to play and get to finals."

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A man has been charged after allegedly threatening Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor during an incident near his home on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.

Norfolk Police earlier said a man was arrested shortly after 19:30 BST on Wednesday after officers received a report of a man a behaving in an intimidating manner in Wolferton.

The Daily Telegraph reported Mountbatten-Windsor was threatened by a balaclava-clad man while out walking his dogs and fled to his car along with his security.

Alex Jenkinson, 39, of Stowmarket, Suffolk, has been remanded in custody and is due to appear at Norwich Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Police said he has been charged with two counts of using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour to harass someone or cause alarm or distress and failing to provide a specimen of blood in custody.

The incident was near Marsh Farm, the property on the Sandringham Estate that Mountbatten-Windsor moved to after leaving Royal Lodge in Windsor due to his association with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

He was also stripped by the King of his right to be a prince and his dukedom late last year over his links to Epstein.

Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing.

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Crystal Palace will face Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final on 27 May

Crystal Palace desperately did not want to be in the Conference League – now they are one game from winning it and creating more club history.

On one of the greatest nights the club has known at a passionate and raucous Selhurst Park, the Eagles beat Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 to seal a 5-2 aggregate success in the semi-finals.

Having won the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025 at Wembley, their remarkable European journey started in a Swiss courtroom, unsuccessfully appealing against demotion into the Conference League from the second-tier Europa League.

But since then, Palace have not looked back.

They have travelled to Norway, Poland, France, Republic of Ireland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cyprus, Italy and back to Poland, with one last stop to come – the final in Germany.

And should Palace lift the trophy on Wednesday, 27 May, in Leipzig against Spanish side Rayo Vallecano, who defeated Gary O'Neil's Strasbourg 2-0 on aggregate in their semi-final, it would complete an unprecedented phase of success for the club.

Boss Oliver Glasner, who will leave in the summer having only been appointed in February 2024, is on the verge of a third trophy in a remarkable period.

Even the 51-year-old could not believe what has been achieved.

"I spoke to the chairman before the match, he always comes into my office," said Glasner afterwards.

"I said, 'do you ever think we would be playing in the semi-final of a European competition?' He said 'no'.

"I said, 'when we talked for the first time three years ago, I didn't think about it'. This is what you achieve if you work hard and stick together in tough moments – and we have had a few. When you stick together in difficult moments, you get the reward."

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At Selhurst Park on Thursday, the atmosphere reached fever pitch.

"I really enjoy the European nights at Selhurst," Glasner said.

"We had to grow into the competition and the fans had to grow. If you look when we started against Larnaca, the level of excitement increased and increased."

While the Shakhtar fans bounced in one corner, home supporters played their part in creating a fantastic mood, with everyone clapping and cheering.

Never will the club anthem of Glad All Over have been sung louder, with added pyrotechnics enhancing the party mood further.

"It was a fantastic atmosphere and a great night at Selhurst," added Glasner. "It's a huge achievement and great credit to the players; everybody could see how good Shakhtar are."

Goalkeeper and captain Dean Henderson summed up the mood as he said: "It's incredible for the football club. You see the connection between the players and the supporters, it's fantastic. It's unbelievable.

"When you come in from a game like that [the FA Cup final], it gives you confidence and makes you hungry. We've got an ambitious group of players as well.

"It's pretty incredible, honestly, to get into a European competition with Crystal Palace, never mind make the final. We've got to deliver something special. We need to get back what we deserve as well [Europa League qualification]."

Goalkeeper Dean Henderson grabbed a megaphone from the fans to celebrate with them after the game

Since Palace were formed in 1905, they have found trophies hard to come by.

Until recently, it could have been claimed that their only success of great merit came in 1991 when Ian Wright scored twice in a 4-1 Wembley final win over Everton to win the Zenith Data Systems Cup.

But Eagles fans have now had 12 unforgettable months.

Eberechi Eze's goal gave them a 1-0 win over Manchester City for a first FA Cup success, before the Community Shield followed with a penalty shootout victory over reigning Premier League champions Liverpool.

The FA Cup glory should have taken Palace into the Europa League, but that was quickly taken away.

The club were punished by Uefa for breaching multi-club ownership rules as American businessman John Textor, who owned a 43% stake in Palace until he sold it in June, was also the majority owner of Lyon, another Europa League qualifier.

Lyon finished higher domestically so they got the Europa League spot, with Palace demoted to the third-tier Conference League and Nottingham Forest taking the Eagles' place.

They appealed but, despite chairman Steve Parish attending an eight-hour legal case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland, they lost.

However, 16 games across the continent later, Palace are now in their first European final, chasing more history, with special cheers from the fans reserved for the news that Forest had lost 4-0 to Aston Villa on Thursday to end their own run in the Europa League.

The Conference League final will provide a fitting farewell for Glasner.

He has consistently said he would not be staying at Selhurst Park beyond this season.

Nevertheless, that did not stop Palace fans from serenading the Austrian and urging him to stay.

"Maybe because I'm leaving some people have come up to me and are saying this is something really special," said Glasner.

"Some people are saying, 'thank you for these exciting two years we've had together'.

"What these players have done for Crystal Palace is incredible, winning the FA Cup, the Community Shield and now this. A few years ago it would've been so far away.

"Now it is close to grab it and you can write history again and give the fans moments that will stay with them forever."

Crystal Palace beat Manchester City 1-0 in May 2025 to win the FA Cup for the first time

For Palace, their European achievement continued a rollercoaster 12 months.

After their FA Cup final triumph, Eze left for Arsenal and captain Marc Guehi almost moved to Liverpool, only for the deal to collapse on deadline day as the Eagles could not find a replacement.

With the added European demands – Thursday's match was their 55th game of 2025-26 – Palace's small squad started to suffer and from December they endured a 12-match winless run.

in January, Palace's FA Cup defence ended with an embarrassing 2-1 third-round loss at sixth-tier Macclesfield. Later that month Glasner announced his planned departure, with news following of England centre-back Guehi's transfer to Manchester City.

Glasner then said he felt his squad were "being abandoned completely" by the Palace hierarchy, with many expecting those comments to lead to an immediate exit.

On top of that, key striker Jean-Philippe Mateta would have left for AC Milan in January had he not failed a medical.

Despite all the chaos and drama, Glasner remained in charge and could lead them to another trophy and more magical moments.

"We want to end the season in the perfect way – and we can do it," Glasner said.

"I said to the players, 'don't do anything for me, do it for yourselves, for the club, for the fans'. Winning the Conference League means European football again next season for Crystal Palace.

"They have had a taste, with the FA Cup and Community Shield, and they want honey again. They will not be happy with just avocado. They want something sweeter."

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