Freiburg and Aston Villa advance to the Europa League final

Johan Manzambi scored to make it 2:0 for Freiburg

Keystone

SC Freiburg have reached a European Cup final for the first time in the club's history. Thanks in part to Johan Manzambi, the Breisgau side turned the tie against Braga around and will face Aston Villa in the final.

Keystone-SDA

07.05.2026, 23:02•07.05.2026, 23:07

Freiburg had to make up for a 2-1 deficit from the first leg of the semi-final and got off to a powerful start in front of their home crowd. After just 19 minutes and a willful goal from full-back Lukas Kübler, the Germans had already set the course for a place in the final. At this point, coach Julian Schuster's team were already playing in superior numbers after Jan-Niklas Beste was prevented from scoring by an emergency brake in the 6th minute.

Johan Manzambi made it 2:0 before the break, the 20-year-old Swiss international scoring with a spectacular shot from 20 meters out. Around 20 minutes before the end, Kübler's second goal only seemed to make everything clear. The Portuguese came back again while short-handed. However, the second goal that would have taken the visitors into extra time was not to be. Bruno Ogbus, who helped the Bundesliga side to hold on to their lead in the closing stages, also played his part.

Emery aims for fifth title

Freiburg will face Aston Villa in the final on May 20 in Istanbul. The team from Birmingham lived up to their role as favorites in the English duel against Nottingham Forest and turned around the 0:1 from the first leg thanks to a 4:0 win in front of the home crowd. Even Dan Ndoye, who was on the bench for the visitors after recovering from injury, was unable to prevent this.

Aston Villa coach Unai Emery continues to work on his legendary status. The Spaniard is already the most successful coach in the competition with four titles (three with Sevilla, one with Villarreal) and is now aiming for his fifth Europa League title with the Premier League runners-up.

Palace and Vallecano ahead of premieres

One level lower, Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano face off in the Conference League. The English Cup winners and the eleventh-placed team in the Spanish league left nothing to be desired after their first-leg victories and also prevailed in the second legs against Shakhtar Donetsk and Strasbourg respectively. Both will be aiming for their first European title in Leipzig on May 27.