Overview
Aston Villa is facing the opportunity to continue their memorable European journey under Unai Emery. However, they will have to create a comeback against Nottingham Forest if they want to win a ticket to the first continental final after decades.
Since the historic Champions League title in 1982 after the victory over Bayern Munich, Aston Villa has never been as close to a European final as it is now. However, the 0-1 defeat in the first leg put the Birmingham representative in a difficult position before the rematch at Villa Park.
In the first leg last week, Nottingham Forest took advantage of the opportunity to gain a slim advantage thanks to Chris Wood's successful penalty in the second half, after Lucas Digne handled the ball in the penalty area.
Between two important matches in the European arena, Unai Emery actively rotated his forces in the Premier League to save strength for key players. However, Aston Villa still suffered a 1-2 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur - a team struggling in the bottom group.
Villa's lackluster performance gives Emery reason to worry. The Villa Park team only had one touch of the ball in Tottenham's penalty area in the first half and almost did not improve the situation after halftime. That is also their fifth defeat in the last 8 matches in the Premier League.
However, Aston Villa is still maintaining a position in the group competing for a Champions League spot and is now forced to focus all their strength on the goal of a comeback in the Europa League. Their journey to the semi-finals is very convincing when they finished second in the group before successively overcoming Lille and Bologna in the knockout rounds.
Villa's biggest foothold lies in Villa Park. The Midlands representative has won 9 consecutive European matches at home, and scored in 31/32 recent matches here.
Head-to-head history also partly brings confidence to Aston Villa. They are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches against Nottingham Forest since 1994, including a Premier League victory in January this year.
However, Nottingham Forest is no longer an easy team to beat as before. The arrival of coach Vitor Pereira in February created a big boost for the Midlands representative.
Nottingham Forest is now only one match away from their first European Cup final in 42 years. Their journey to the semi-finals is also very noteworthy when they successively defeated Fenerbahce, Midtjylland and Porto.
Personnel situation
Aston Villa is likely to field the strongest squad in the second leg after Emery's rotation options disappointed in the defeat against Tottenham. Ollie Watkins is definitely the most notable name as the English striker is expected to lead the attack of the Villa Park home team.
Captain John McGinn is also likely to reappear after missing the match against Spurs due to muscle problems. The return of the Scottish midfielder is seen as a major boost for Aston Villa in the context that the team needs more steel and experience in midfield.
On the Nottingham Forest side, Vitor Pereira made up to eight changes in the victory over Chelsea to save strength for key players. Luca Netz started for the first time in the league, while many other substitutes were also given opportunities.
Expected lineup:
Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Bogarde, Tielemans, McGinn, Rogers, Buendia, Watkins.
Nottingham Forest: Ortega, Abbott, Milenkovic, Morato, Williams, Hutchinson, Dominguez, Anderson, Gibbs-White, Jesus, Wood.
The match between Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest takes place at 2:00 a.m. on May 8 (Vietnam time).
