No Europa League Final for Aina, Awoniyi as Aston Villa Maul Nottingham

Aston Villa's Scottish midfielder #07 John McGinn is mobbed by teammates after scoring the team's fourth goal during the UEFA Europa League, semi-final second-leg football match between Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest at Villa Park in Birmingham, central England on May 7, 2026. (Photo by Darren Staples / AFP)

*Aston Villa to play German side Freiburg in Istanbul final on May 20

Duro Ikhazuagbe

Nigeria’s duo of Ola Aina and Taiwo Awoniyi ended their dreams of playing in the Europa League final with Nottingham Forest last night as they were comprehensively mauled 4-0 in the second leg fixture by fellow English Premier League team, Aston Villa.

Both Nigerians were not listed for the semi final squad at Villa Park as Unai Emery’s men cancelled out Forest’s 1-0 advantage from the first leg in the 36th minute through Ollie Watkins.

More strikes from Emi Buendia and John McGinn’s brace saw Villa break Nottingham Forest’s hearts and win over the one belonging to Prince William,

who celebrated in the Villa Park stands.

Ola Aina was absent from Forest’s final training on Wednesday for this return leg at Villa Park. Sky Sports confirmed that the Nigeria international sustained an injury during the first leg at the City Ground, where Forest secured the narrow 1-0 advantage.

Awoniyi’s brace in Nottingham Forest’s 3-1 Win against Chelsea on Monday was not enough to convince Coach Viktor Pereira that the Nigerian forward could make a difference in the clash.

Villa will now face Freiburg in the Europa League final on May 20 at the Besiktas Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, looking to win their first silverware since 1996. The German club Freiburg outscored Braga 4-3 on aggregate after they won 3-1 last night in front of their home fans.

In the Europa Conference, Crystal Palace’s historic 12 months continued as they qualified for their first-ever European final with a 5-2 aggregate victory against Shakhtar Donetsk at Selhurst Park.

They will play Rayo Vallecano who made history by qualifying for their first-ever European cup final after defeating Strasbourg 2-0 aggregate.

RESULTS

Europa League

Aston Villa 4-0 Nottingham

(Aston Villa 4-1 aggregate)

Freiburg 3-1 Braga

(Freiburg 4-3 aggregate)

Europa Conference

Cry’Palace 2-1 Shakhtar

( Cry’Palace 5-2 aggregate)

Strasbourg 0-1 Rayo Vallecano

(Rayo 2-0 aggregate)