Emery is looking for a Europa League lift with villa as a forest ends long absence

Unai Emery will hope that a return to the Europa League this week serves the spark plug that ignites the season of Aston Villa, while Nottingham Forest starts his first European campaign in 30 years.

Emery is the most successful manager in the history of the Europa League and wins the title three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal, but his Villa side has made a restless start of the new campaign.

Villa was without winning by the first five Premier League matches and had not even scored for Sunday’s 1-1 draw at 10-man Sunderland, making Emery «frustrated and disappointed».

«Our start, we didn’t do well,» admitted the Spaniard, who also brought Arsenal to the Europa League final to the Europa League in 2019.

“There is still work to do; some players adapt to the team and our idea, and they need time.

«Other players were here last year and know how we want to build the team and how we were successful for the past three years.»

Villa reached the quarterfinals of last season’s Champions League before he lost 5-4, aggregated to final winners Paris Saint-Germain.

It again missed the qualification for Europe’s top club competition on the last day of last season, with this its first performance in the Europa League head drawing since 2008-09.

Villa starts on Thursday at home in Bologna in a repeat of the 2-0 win over the Italians in the Champions League last October.

Bologna has qualified as winners of the Italian Cup, the first major trophy since 1974.

Just like Emery, the new boss of Nottingham Forest also knows what is needed to win the Europa League.

Ange Postecoglou, appointed by Forest earlier this month, sent Tottenham to a rare trophy in previous term when the Manchester United defeated in the final.

He is looking for his first victory in Forest after two defeats, including an Early League Cup exit and the 1-1 draw from Saturday in Burnley.

The Australian, fired by Spurs in June after the worst Premier League season, took over from Nuno Espirito Santo and tries to implement his more extensive style in Forest in the search for silverware.

«I like to play exciting football and score goals,» Postecoglou said upon his arrival at the city, the home of the European Cup winners of 1979 and 1980.

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«There is no excuses about that. That’s just the way I am and the way I want to see my teams play.»

Forest travels to Real Betis on Wednesday for his first European match since the quarterfinals of the UEFA Cup 1995-96 against Bayern Munich.

Betis has former United Winger Antony in his team after the Brazilian had joined the Spanish side for a five -year deal after a successful loan saying.

Led by former Manchester City and West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini, Betis finished second in Chelsea in the UEFA Conference League last season after reaching the first European final.

Celtic and Rangers both fell in the second-class competition after they were short of the Champions League play-off round last month.

Brendan Rodgers takes his Celtic team to Serbia on Wednesday to face Red Star Belgrade opposite a battle of former European champions.

Rangers are on their way to the worst domestic start since 1978 and fans protested against manager Russell Martin during the victory of Saturday’s League Cup, who did little to suppress anger around Ibrox.

«I can’t have control over it,» said Martin, while fans delayed the game by swinging hundreds of colored balls on the field and called for his looting.

«At this football club it quickly becomes about one person,» Martin added. «It’s about me, not because of my choice.»

Two -time winners Porto and Feyenoord, coached by former Dutch star Robin van Persie, both compete in the competition phase. Porto starts against Salzburg, while Feyenoord visits Braga.

Twice second, Roma opens their campaign against Nice, while Fenerbahce-die Jose Mourinho fired after he did not get the Champions League his way to Dinamo Zagreb.

He also won the prize in 2021 after Italy won the European championship.

Published on September 23, 2025