Freiburg v Aston Villa: Europa League final – live | Europa League
Key occasions
Unai Emery speaks to TNT Sports: “Definitely very normal routine [today] … analyze our performance … analyze our opponent … respect them a lot … now we focus … everywhere the fans travel with us … today is a special day for them … we do this for them … they enjoy it with heart … respect Europe … respect the opponent … completely focus on our game-plan … our personality … our identity … the players on the bench must have a good impact … we have options.”
…and hopefully we can’t should reference Jimmy Rimmer once more this night. Here’s Ben Fisher…
The groups have simply been studying aloud and Emi Martinez’s title was the primary to obtain a large cheer. At the tip of the workforce information, Unai Emery’s title can also be given an enormous reception.
David Lacey – one of many real greats of sportswriting – was in Rotterdam to see Villa win the aforementioned 1982 European Cup final. Here’s his report, in superb new-fangled click-o-vision.
Pre-match postbag. “Villa fan at the stadium. Both sets of fans have been fantastic. Brilliant venue on the river (apart from the capacity). Dying of nerves. Just win. They’re good. We should be better but in a one-off game we’ve proven to be brilliant and… v Spurs. I hope this is a stop in the journey up with Unai but being a Villa fan you always have that fear” – David Bertram
“It’s the edge of the Black Forest versus the gateway to the Black Country, the Breisgauern against the Brummies, Germany’s eco-friendly Green City facing England’s Second City! Breisgau-Brum Bash by the Bosphorus!” – Peter Oh (however you’d guessed that already, hadn’t you)
“The quiz about English teams in European finals led me to reflect. As a boy/teenager I supported every English team in a European final – yes, even Man Utd in 1968. Now, not so much: in fact I’m not sure I want any of the English teams playing over the next few days to win. It’s that because
(a) I’m bitter because my team has never won anything, so I don’t want other English teams to win? Probably.
(b) supporting a team for so many years means you build up grievances against virtually every other team (don’t get me started on Derby 1983)? Almost certainly.
(c) have I just become a grumpy old curmudgeon? Let’s not go there.
Has anyone else observed this phenomenon?” -Richard Hirst
Jimmy Rimmer of our days latest. “Martinez has gone down the tunnel,” reports Ben Fisher. “The other GKs are still warming up, though GKs usually head in early, don’t they?”
Hmm. So much for that panic being over.
Villa have form for goalkeeper woes in European finals. Jimmy Rimmer went into the 1982 European Cup final with a sore neck, having a whack in training taken a couple of days before the match. He lasted nine minutes before giving way to 23-year-old substitute goalie Nigel Spink, who went on to have the match of his life. So all won’t be lost should the worst happen to Martinez…
…although our man on the spot, Ben Fisher, has just reported that “the glove is now back on and he’s practicing claiming crosses from coaches and the other goalkeepers.” So panic over, for now at least.
Some concerning news for Villa, as keeper Emi Martinez appears to have a problem with his right hand. Our man in Istanbul, Ben Fisher, reports.
Emi Martinez could have a difficulty right here: Villa’s goalkeeping coach, Javi Garcia, has simply spent the previous couple of minutes taping one in every of Martinez’s fingers and now the Argentinian World Cup winner is continuous to heat up along with his proper goalie glove in his left hand. He seems to be very cell, however it would not appear ideally suited.
This is the primary time Aston Villa and Freiburg have met. Precedent lovers should due to this fact look to earlier matches in opposition to groups from the opponents’ nation. Villa have received their final two conferences in opposition to groups from Germany, having overwhelmed Bayern Munich and Leipzig throughout the group part of final season’s Champions League. And after all they’re going to all the time have Rotterdam, the place they noticed off Bayern within the 1982 final. As for Freiburg, they’ve performed 4 matches in opposition to English opposition… and all of them have been in opposition to West Ham within the 2023-24 Europa League! They went down 1-2 and 0-2 within the teams, received the primary leg of a round-of-16 tie 1-0, then misplaced the second leg 0-5. So it is benefit Villa.
… in order that’s the identical Villa XI that began the second-leg win over Nottingham Forest, and final Friday’s evisceration of Liverpool. Not an enormous shock: Villa scored 4 targets in each of these matches. Viktor Lindelof retains his place in midfield, and that retains Amadou Onana on the bench.
The groups
Freiburg: Atubolu, Kübler, Ginter, Lienhart, Treu, Eggestein, Höfler, Beste, Manzambi, Grifo, Matanovic.
Subs: Müller, Huth, Jung, Osterhage, Scherhant, Höler, Irié, Philipp, Günter, Makengo, Rosenfelder, Ogbus.
Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, Lindelof, Rogers, Tielemans, Buendia, McGinn, Watkins.
Subs: Bizot, Wright, Mings, Elliott, Garcia, Abraham, Sancho, Luiz, Maatsen, Onana, Bogarde, Bailey.
Referee: François Letexier (France)
VAR: Jérôme Brisard (France)
Matty Cash – sporting a beautiful tracksuit high with scrumptious 1982 Villa roundel – speaks to TNT Sports. “Really loud… full of Villans everywhere… really excited… I’m sure they’ll be really loud all night… such a fantastic club… finally got itself back in European football… we’ve got a great opportunity to give the fans what they deserve, a trophy back to Villa Park… we know what a big test it is… we’re playing a really competitive team… we believe in [Unai Emery] …we watched one video today and one last night… it was an hour and a half, though!”
This is a big match for Aston Villa all proper … however for SC Freiburg, this represents the most important event within the membership’s whole 121-year historical past. Freiburg have by no means received a serious trophy – runners-up within the 2022 German cup final is as shut as they’ve come – so merely getting right here is a big achievement for Julian Schuster and his workforce. Andy Brassell runs the rule over the people in Aston Villa’s manner.
Unai Emery is hoping to make it 5 wins from six Europa League final appearances tonight. Here’s his story to date.
Q: Do you will have time to kill earlier than kick-off?
A: Yes.
Preamble
Aston Villa have received two European trophies of their historical past. And no we’re not counting the Intertoto Cup. Dignity, my associates, dignity. The first, and fairly clearly probably the most particular, is the 1982 European Cup, impressed by Ron Saunders however truly received by Tony Barton and Peter Withe. You can relive, rediscover or simply examine that with David Lacey’s match report…
…and Ben Fisher’s nostalgic chat with the gamers.
A wonderful victory that may by no means get outdated. Though is it as downright hilarious as their dismantling within the Super Cup the next yr of Barcelona, who within the Eighties have been a rugged bathe of galoots and hoodlums?
No after all it is not. Glory days. But it is long gone the time Villa had one other main European victory to rejoice. Can they flip Istanbul into Astonbul? They’re favorites to beat Freiburg tonight, and it would not hurt that their boss, Unai Emery, can also be the guvnor of the Europa Leaguehaving received it 4 instances already for Sevilla and Villarreal. Can John McGinn be part of Dennis Mortimer and Ken McNaught in hoisting some continental silver for the Villa? We’ll discover out quickly sufficient. Kick-off at Beşiktaş Stadyumu is at 8pm BST. It’s on!
