Aston Villa roared into their first European final since 1982 with a commanding 4-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at Villa Park. Prince William was seen punching the air in the stands as Emiliano Buendía converted a penalty just before the hour, before captain John McGinn scored two almost identical first-time finishes in three minutes to seal the rout.
The win sets up a Europa League final against Freiburg in Istanbul, with Unai Emery chasing a record fifth title in the competition. Villa supporters began planning trips to Turkey as their team moved within one match of their first trophy since the 1996 League Cup.
Forest, missing the injured Morgan Gibbs-White, were on a 10-game unbeaten run but were blown away after Ollie Watkins opened the scoring in the 35th minute. The goal came from a mix-up between Nikola Milenkovic and goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, with Watkins slotting home Buendía's pass.
The visitors' hopes faded further when Milenkovic handled Pau Torres's shirt from a Buendía cross, conceding a penalty. Buendía sent Ortega the wrong way with a crisp spot-kick.
McGinn then took centre stage, firing home from close range twice in quick succession to put the tie beyond doubt. The midfielder celebrated with disbelief as stewards lined the pitch to control the jubilant home fans.
Forest, who had taken a first-leg lead through Chris Wood's penalty, never recovered. Ryan Yates tried to inject energy but his side failed to test Villa's defence. The defeat ends Evangelos Marinakis's hopes of silverware this season, though Forest are likely safe in the Premier League.
