Aston Villa aim to bury semi-final pain in all-English Europa League clash v Nottingham Forest

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery said his side will use their two painful semi-final defeats as the driving force for European success when they visit Nottingham Forest in the first leg of their Europa League last-four tie on Thursday.

The Spaniard has endured semi-final heartbreak twice since taking charge in 2022 - losing to Greek side Olympiacos in the Europa Conference League in 2024 and falling to Crystal Palace in last season's FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.

Yet Emery believes those setbacks will now fuel Villa's quest for glory rather than haunt them.

"Different competitions, different circumstances," Emery told reporters on Wednesday ahead of the first leg.

"The semi-final against Olympiacos two years ago, we lost, but we were also in the Premier League fighting to finish fourth.

"We finished that season tired and with some injuries. We lost, we accepted it, and it was a process we went through at that moment.

"Last year, we played the FA Cup semi-final and went to Wembley. It was my first experience of a semi-final at Wembley in the FA Cup. We lost against Crystal Palace - another experience.

"But they were two different situations: against Olympiacos it was over two legs, and against Crystal Palace in the FA Cup it was 90 minutes. We are going to use those experiences to do better this time."

Emery is no stranger to success in Europe's second-tier competition. He led Spanish side Sevilla to three Europa League titles and guided Villarreal to glory in the 2020-21 campaign.

Villa are fifth in the Premier League with 58 points and four games remaining. However, their form on the road remains a concern, with just one win in their last eight away league matches.

Forest, meanwhile, sit 16th with 39 points and are battling to avoid relegation, but they head into the semi-final in strong form. They are unbeaten in six league games and thrashed Sunderland 5-0 on Friday.

"It will be good energy," Forest manager Vitor Pereira said. "What I ask every time in training and in games is for good energy. With good vibes we can achieve miracles, and in the end, we can be proud of ourselves."

(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru Editing by Toby Davis)