44 years after the glorious night when they defeated Bayern Munich to reach the top of Europe, Aston Villa once again touched the glory. And this time, the guide for them is Unai Emery - "the king of the Europa League".
The 54-year-old strategist continued to affirm his special position in this arena when he helped Aston Villa defeat Freiburg 3-0 in the final in Istanbul, thereby winning his fifth Europa League title in his career.
The classy goals of Youri Tielemans, Emiliano Buendia and Morgan Rogers helped the Premier League representative complete their overwhelming performance against the opponent from the Bundesliga. This is Aston Villa's first major title since the 1996 League Cup, and also marks a historical milestone in the revival journey of the team that fell to the Championship in 2016.
The moment captain John McGinn raised the cup at Besiktas Park is a symbolic image of Aston Villa's transformation over the past decade. 7 years ago, McGinn also fought with the team in the Championship promotion play-off against Derby County. Now, he has become the captain who brought Villa back to the top of European football.
Around McGinn is the team that has accompanied Aston Villa throughout the rebuilding journey: Tyrone Mings, Ezri Konsa, Emiliano Martinez, Ollie Watkins or Matty Cash. These are names that have experienced many painful defeats before reaching the moment of glory in Istanbul.
Villa stopped in the Conference League semi-finals in 2024 and the Champions League quarter-finals last season, before finally completing his journey with the Europa League title.
Against Freiburg, Emery's team played with superior confidence and bravery. Aston Villa controlled the game, maintained a stable intensity and launched three accurate finishing blows to close the final in a more than convincing way.
With his fifth title, Emery continues to go down in European football history. The Spanish coach is now the strategist who has won the most Europa League titles in history. He also became the first coach to win this tournament with 3 different clubs: Sevilla, Villarreal and Aston Villa.
In UEFA's major tournaments, only Carlo Ancelotti with five Champions League titles has the same number of titles as Emery at the continental level.
Before the match, Emery denied that he was the "king of the Europa League". But with more than 11,000 Aston Villa fans present in Istanbul, his position has almost surpassed that of an ordinary coach. In just 4 years, Emery turned Aston Villa from the 17th-placed Premier League team into a European champion and a regular representative in the Champions League. More importantly, he did it with a clear identity.
Against Freiburg, Aston Villa actively broke the opponent's pressing system with long passes towards Ollie Watkins, while making the most of Morgan Rogers and Buendia's ability to switch speed.
Tielemans' opening goal was the product of a well-organized set piece situation under the support of expert Austin MacPhee. Morgan Rogers created space with an accurate cross for the Belgian midfielder to unleash a powerful volley.
If the first goal showed tactical preparation, Buendia's goal was deeply marked by personal inspiration. From outside the penalty area, the Argentine midfielder launched a curling shot with his unsuitable left foot, sending the ball into the top corner of the goal in the helplessness of Noah Atubolu. That was also the moment that almost decided the final match.
Morgan Rogers' remaining goal in the second half was more visually simple, but enough to close Aston Villa's perfect night.
