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Having thrashed Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Friday night, Nottingham Forest head into this one in particularly buoyant spirits.
However, in similarity to their Premier League home record, Forest have recorded a mixed bag of European results at the City Ground this term.
In addition to losing twice to Danish outfit FC Midtjylland, the Reds were beaten by Fenerbahçe on home soil in the second leg of their play-off tie.
Nevertheless, Forest dispatched Malmö, Ferencvárosi, and Porto twice in the East Midlands without conceding a goal, so it’ll be interesting to see what type of performance the hosts produce this time.
Despite successfully leading his team through the knockout stages, Vítor Pereira has registered fewer victories in Europe this season than his predecessor Sean Dyche.
The former Burnley boss claimed four wins during his short tenure, while Ange Postecoglou took one point from two league phase contests before being dismissed on just his 39th day in charge.
Evangelos Marinakis relieved Nuno Espírito Santo of his duties ahead of the Europa League campaign, triggering an incredible managerial merry-go-round.
Aston Villa have acquired plenty of continental experience of late, with this being their second semi-final appearance in a major UEFA competition within the space of three seasons.
The West Midlanders only suffered one defeat during the league phase, a shock 2-1 loss to Dutch minnows Go Ahead Eagles in Deventer.
Having won each of their other five Europa League away fixtures this season, Unai Emery’s men will be confident of taking a lead back to Villa Park for next week’s return leg.
The TNT Sports cameras will be at the City Ground on Thursday night, with live coverage commencing an hour before a 20:00 (BST) kick-off.
Nottingham Forest v Aston Villa – Key information
Date: Thursday, 30th April
Kick-off time: 20:00 (BST)
Venue: City Ground, Nottingham
Referee: TBC
VAR: TBC
TV Channels/Live stream: TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports Ultimate, HBO Max
Odds: Nottingham Forest: 6/4, Draw: 11/5, Aston Villa: 9/5
Odds provided by bet365
Nottingham Forest team news
Vítor Pereira is currently without the services of several first-team stars, but only has one fresh injury concern following Forest’s 5-0 triumph over Sunderland.
Jair Cunha was seen clutching his arm in pain as he left the pitch on Friday night, casting doubt over whether he’ll be available for this week’s tie.
Cunha had been providing cover in the absence of his compatriot Murillo, who sustained a hamstring strain against Burnley. That will likely result in Pereira having to deploy another member of his Brazilian defensive contingent, with former Benfica centre-back Morato returning to the starting XI.
No fewer than three Forest players are sidelined with long-term knee problems, all of whom are expected to be out for the remainder of the season. Nicolò Savona required surgery after damaging his knee in a routine training session, while John Victor has also gone under the knife following an incident during a recent contest with Thursday’s opponents.
The 30-year-old goalkeeper hurt himself in the act of conceding a third goal at Villa Park, as John McGinn stroked home to put the hosts into a commanding lead. With his contract running out in the summer, crocked centre-back Willy Boly might have played his last game for the club.
Callum Hudson-Odoi is recovering from a serious quadricep issue, but won’t be back before pre-season training commences in the summer. An unused substitute at the Stadium of Light, Swiss international Dan Ndoye should be fit enough to feature on Thursday evening.
Nottingham Forest predicted line-up v Aston Villa (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Vítor Pereira
Matz Sels (GK); Ola Aina, Nikola Milenković, Morato, Neco Williams; Ibrahim Sangaré, Elliot Anderson; Dilane Bakwa, Morgan Gibbs-White, Omari Hutchinson, Igor Jesus
Aston Villa team news
Although he’s unable to call upon the services of influential midfielder Boubacar Kamara or talented teenager Alysson, Unai Emery otherwise has a full complement to choose from.
Kamara returned to his native France at the beginning of the year to undergo surgery on his knee, while Alysson – who was not included in Aston Villa’s Europa League squad for the knockout stages anyway – has struggled with a couple of niggling issues since arriving at Villa Park during the winter window.
Ross Barkley also failed to make the final cut, although Emery has handed the English midfielder a succession of Premier League starts over the past few weeks.
After his arm was put in a sling during the first half of last month’s friendly meeting with La Liga strugglers Elche, Jadon Sancho was unavailable when Villa faced Forest just over a fortnight ago. However, the on-loan winger has since made three substitute appearances.
Aston Villa predicted line-up v Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Unai Emery
Emiliano Martínez (GK); Matty Cash, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne; Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans; John McGinn, Morgan Rogers, Emiliano Buendía; Ollie Watkins
Where to watch on TV or live stream?
The match will be shown on TNT Sports 1, while customers with a premium subscription can enjoy an enhanced viewing experience over on TNT Sports Ultimate.
Although TNT Sports will be primarily focused on events in Nottingham, the network is also screening the Conference League semi-final meeting between Shakhtar Donetsk and Crystal Palace at the Henryk Reyman Municipal Stadium.
At the end of March, HBO Max replaced Discovery+ as the official streaming partner of TNT Sports. As both platforms are subsidiaries of the Warner Bros. enterprise, customers with a Discovery+ account can access HBO Max free of charge.
To do this, they just need to enter their existing Discovery+ login details into the HBO Max app or website.
Head-to-Head record
Although both clubs have a decorated European history, this will be the first clash between Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa in a major UEFA competition.
These two sides first met in a second-round FA Cup tie almost 146 years ago, and have since played each other on a further 135 occasions.
As well as boasting a superior overall head-to-head record, Villa have taken four points from Forest during the current Premier League campaign.
After claiming a comfortable 3-1 win in Birmingham at the start of 2026, Villa drew 1-1 with the two-time European Cup winners earlier this month.
Nottingham Forest v Aston Villa – Match Result odds
Nottingham Forest: 6/4 (bet365)
The odds, correct at the time of publication, are subject to change. All odds provided by bet365.