Three and a half years ago, Aston Villa finished 17th in the Premier League, with no reason to dream of European nights under the lights. On Thursday, they will walk out at the City Ground for the biggest match in recent memory: a Europa League semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest, with a place in the final on the line.
It is a transformation almost too remarkable to believe. Unai Emery arrived in October 2022 after Villa had failed to finish higher than 11th since returning to the top flight, a club wandering in the wilderness under Steven Gerrard's leadership. Now, under the Spanish coach, they are two legs from a European final and virtually assured of Champions League football next season.
"When I arrived here three and a half years ago, it was a dream to be playing a semi-final of the Europa League," Emery said. "Finishing the season like we are now, in the league and in a semi-final, it's really something fantastic."
The squad that will take the field carries the fingerprints of both the Dean Smith era and Emery's careful rebuilding. Tyrone Mings, John McGinn and Tammy Abraham started when Villa beat Derby in the 2019 Championship play-off final. Ezri Konsa and Douglas Luiz followed that summer. Ollie Watkins arrived a year later for a then-club record £28 million from Brentford, alongside Matty Cash and goalkeeper Emi Martínez — a collection of players who have grown from Championship level to Champions League contenders.
Emery, who has won the Europa League a record four times — three with Sevilla and once with Villarreal — has moulded this group into genuine European pedigree. The manager's private focus on this defining fixture, even amid a difficult run of results, has drawn quiet admiration from rival Premier League bosses, sources say.
Yet even as Villa chase glory on two fronts, change is coming. England forward Morgan Rogers, a star of this campaign, is the club's biggest asset as they navigate profit and sustainability rules. Jacob Ramsey left for Newcastle last summer for £40 million. The squad requires refreshing, and Emery and president of football operations Roberto Olabe — handpicked by the manager himself — are aligned on the vision: more youth, smart signings, and sustained competitiveness.
"We are improving, including myself, and we will have more challenges to set for the present or future," Emery said. "The players are enjoying the process we are doing... this is the greatest moment we are having in the last three years."
For Watkins, the message is clear: this moment matters. "This is the only moment when we will have all of the same players in the dressing room this year," he said. "We need to do everything we can to get to the end."
On Thursday, Villa have the chance to prove they belong among Europe's elite. For a club that was fighting relegation just years ago, the journey itself is already a triumph.