Aston Villa thrashed Premier League rivals Nottingham Forest 4-0 in the second leg of the Europa League semifinal on Thursday, booking their first European final appearance since 1983. The Villans will face SC Freiburg on May 20. For manager Unai Emery, reaching the decider of UEFA’s second-tier competition has become almost routine—this marks his sixth final, a record among active coaches. He has won four of his previous five finals, a strong track record. Transfermarkt examines the managers with the most final appearances across UEFA’s three club competitions or their predecessors.
Giovanni Trapattoni leads the all-time list with 10 finals, winning five. He is followed by Udo Lattek, Ernst Happel, and Sven-Göran Eriksson, each with seven finals. Emery, counting the upcoming clash with Freiburg, sits fifth, tying him with legends such as Sir Alex Ferguson, Carlo Ancelotti, and José Mourinho. However, unlike those three, Emery has never reached a Champions League or European Cup final. He remains under contract at Villa until 2029 and is now aiming to deliver the club’s first major trophy in three decades.
A notable side note involves Jadon Sancho: the on-loan winger will feature in a European final for the third consecutive season—following the 2024 Champions League final and the 2025 Europa Conference League final, he now appears in the 2026 Europa League final for Aston Villa.
