Aston Villa face Freiburg in the UEFA Europa League final on Wednesday evening, as they look to win their first trophy in 30 years, and a first European trophy since winning the European Cup in 1982.
It is a historic occasion in Istanbul for Freiburg as well, as they play their first-ever final in European competition, and have a place in the next season's UEFA Champions League up for grabs as well. In addition to this, Freiburg have never won a major top-level trophy in their entire history, which makes this the perhaps the biggest game they have ever played in their history.
Villa were superb in the Premier League on Friday night, as they dispatched a sorry Liverpool side 4-2 at Villa Park, to secure qualification for the Champions League from the Premier League anyway.
Freiburg meanwhile finished their Bundesliga season in seventh place, but won only one of their last four games -- on the final day, beating RB Leipzig 4-1.
Here's everything you need to know about the game:
How to watch:
The match will be shown on TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports Ultimate, and HBO Max in the UK, Paramount+ in the U.S., JioHotstar in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details:
Kick-off time: Wednesday, May 20 at 8 p.m. BST (3:15 p.m. ET; 12.45 a.m. IST; and 5:15 a.m. AEST).
Venue: Besiktas Park, Istanbul
Referee: François Letexier (France)
VAR: Jérôme Brisard (France)
Injury and Team News:
Aston Villa
Emiliano BuendÃa, M: knock, DOUBT
Amadou Onana, M: calf, OUT
Boubacar Kamara, M: knee, OUT
Freiburg
Max Rosenfelder, D: hamstring, OUT
Patrick Osterhage, M: knock, OUT
Yuito Suzuki, M: collarbone, OUT
Talking Points:
Villa chase legend status
It's been 30 years since Aston Villa last won a top-level trophy of any kind. It's been 44 years since they won a European trophy. So it now goes without saying that if this Villa squad can win this final, they will all go down as legends at Villa Park.
Villa definitely begin this game as the favourites, particularly after the run they've had in this competition so far. They won seven out of their eight games in the league phase, and have had anything but an easy path to this final. They've beaten Lille, Bologna and Nottingham Forest in the last three rounds to get to this final.
They're also purring in attack right now, with their games against Forest in the second leg of the Europa League semifinal, and the league game against Liverpool on Friday sure to send an alarm or two the way of Freiburg.
Emery himself is looking for a fifth Europa League title in his sixth appearance in the final of this competition. He's won the title three times with Sevilla before, and once with Villarreal. Emery's only loss in a Europa League final came in 2019, when his Arsenal team lost 4-1 to Chelsea.
Freiburg seek exclamation mark on remarkable run
Getting to a final is a massive achievement for Freiburg. If they go one better now, and win this whole thing, then there wouldn't have been a day like it in their entire existence as a club. For 122 years, Freiburg have never won a major trophy at the top level. That could change on Wednesday night.
Like Villa, they too finished in the top eight of the league phase, and avoided the knockout playoff round. In the knockouts, they've seen off Genk, Celta Vigo and Braga rather comfortably.
Villa are a different level of opposition to the ones they've faced so far, though. But it is a challenge that they must be raring to take on.
John McGinn holds the key for Villa
He scored twice in the second leg of the semifinal against Nottingham Forest, and just on Friday evening, scored a scorcher of a goal from long range against Liverpool as well. Villa's captain John McGinn has hit form at just the right time in the season for them.
Starting on the right, McGinn is the perfect foil to the likes of Morgan Rogers and Emiliano Buendia, as the supply line for Ollie Watkins. He's a sensational hold-up player, and that is a key for Villa tactically. McGinn keeping possession on the right side allows him to bring the likes of Rogers, Watkins and Buendia into games.
He's also got a mean strike on him with his left foot, and that is overall such a wonderful package to have.
Can free-scoring Freiburg play their own way?
In four of the six knockout ties in the Europa League this season, Freiburg have scored three or more goals. They've warmed up for this final with a thrashing of RB Leipzig on Saturday evening, where they scored four goals again.
Julian Schuster's side have been entertainers all season, with their top-scorer Vincenzo Grifo holding the key to their attack. Grifo has 14 goals and nine assists to his name this season, so he will be the man that Villa will have to stop.
However, Grifo isn't the only one in the Freiburg ranks capable of threatening Villa. Young attacking midfielder Johan Manzambi has had a superb season as well.
What do the numbers say
No manager has won the Europa League more than the four times that Unai Emery has done it.
Aston Villa have scored 28 goals this season in the Europa League, and Freiburg have scored 25. They are the two top-scoring teams in the competition.
Of their 28, Villa have 14 times in the knockout stages, while 15 of Freiburg's 25 goals this season have come in the knockout stages.
Vincenzo Grifo, Ollie Watkins and John McGinn have all scored five goals in the Europa League this season. They are all two behind tournament top scorer Igor Jesus of Nottingham Forest.
