BBC Sport football correspondent Nick Macht said Wednesday’s Europa League final “does feel like Villa’s last chance to win the trophy”.
Villa beat Liverpool 4-2 in the Premier League on Friday to secure their return to the Champions League with one game remaining, meaning manager Unai Emery can focus all his efforts on winning his fifth Europa League title.
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Speaking on the latest episode of the BBC’s More Than The Score podcast, which explores Emery’s career and what drives him, Marsht said: “The pressure has been lifted to a certain extent. Unai Emery has always been convinced that the league is the priority, qualifying for the Champions League through the league is the priority. They have done that now, that’s guaranteed.”
“Emery has incredible drive and meticulousness. It’s not just the Europa League, under Steven Gerrard he took over Aston Villa when they were just three points away from the relegation zone and over three-and-a-half years built the team into a stable, European-qualified side that reached a major European final for the first time since 1982.
“Villa hadn’t won a trophy for 30 years, so he turned the whole club into one that was constantly challenging for European places and trophies.
“They’ve been to the semi-finals twice before and lost both times, so winning the semi-final against Nottingham Forest was also a huge hurdle.
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“Villa need to get over that line because this is really the last chance for this team and this team to really get results and win something before the expected changes in the squad happen.
“You may see a lot of players leaving in the summer and this will be their last chance in Istanbul.”
Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds
[BBC]