LONDON – Aston Villa head into a first European semi-final for 42 years against Olympiakos on May 2, but have the experience of a proven winner at this stage of continental competition in manager Unai Emery.
The Spaniard is a four-time Europa League champion from his spells at Sevilla and Villarreal and is now targeting a first Europa Conference League success to cap his transformation of a sleeping giant.
Villa sat just outside the English Premier League relegation zone with just two wins from their opening 12 games under the sacked Steven Gerrard before Emery took charge in November 2022.
Despite that handicap, he still managed to qualify Villa for Europe for the first time since 2010 thanks to a seventh-placed finish.
“He does not miss a trick,” said club captain John McGinn.
“He’s obsessed with football and he wants us to be obsessed with football.
“He’s completely transformed this place and it’s a pleasure to work under him.”
Even more glamorous nights for Villa Park await next season with the side closing in on a first-ever taste of the Champions League since it was rebranded from the European Cup.
Villa are comfortably fourth in the Premier League with 67 points.
Champions of Europe in 1982, the side from Birmingham have not been back at that elite level since.
Yet, Emery has still referenced the images of the club’s European Cup triumph on the walls of the training ground as a source of inspiration for a new era of success that he is building.
“Every day when I go to the training ground, there is the ’82 European Cup (picture). It’s good to have that memory,” he said.
“This is the history for Aston Villa. Of course we want to write a new history now, doing it our way and hopefully we can do something important here.”
A 4-0 win over Ajax in the last 16 is a memory most Villa fans will cling on to for decades to come.
Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez’s antics to beat Lille in a tense penalty shoot-out in the quarter-finals will also go down in the club’s folklore.
But the toll of this season began to show in a tired second-half display on April 27, as they blew a two-goal lead in a 2-2 draw against Chelsea at home.
However, an Olympiakos side who sit fourth in the Greek top flight should pose little threat at Villa Park.
The best news of all for Villa fans arguably came last week when Emery extended his contract until 2027. His detail-oriented approach has been welcomed with open arms by a side desperate for their time to shine on the European stage. AFP
