EUROPA LEAGUE FINAL PREVIEW | Aston Villa vs. Freiburg 🔥👀

0:00 It all goes down on May 20th.

0:01 Of course, you know where to catch it,

0:03 all on Paramount Plus [music] and CBS Sports Network.

0:06 But Charlie, let's dive into Aston Villa specifically because [music] if Unai

0:12 Emery is able to bring the Europa [music] League trophy to Villa,

0:17 how big of an accomplishment would that be?

0:20 Massive.

0:21 I mean, we're talking about a a major European trophy.

0:24 And by the way, he's the king of this competition anyways,

0:26 but um now that England are getting five teams in the Champions League,

0:31 the the fifth the fourth spot isn't as important for Unai Emery

0:36 given that they're in fifth place

0:37 comfortably with Bournemouth uh six points adrift.

0:41 But it feels like for Unai Emery to continue to cement

0:44 his place into the Villa folklore because his project has gone so well.

0:50 I mean, last year they were in the quarterfinals of Champions

0:52 League and they lost to the eventual winners in PSG.

0:54 By the way, they took them all the way uh to the end of that second second leg.

0:59 He's been phenomenal for Aston Villa.

1:02 Um I think he needs more reinforcements uh to be honest

1:06 if he wants [music] to take Villa to the next stage, right?

1:10 That that next level of trying to compete for a Champions League trophy.

1:13 But this is is [music] he's got one hand on this trophy.

1:17 They're the heavy favorites going into the final.

1:20 And I think for Villa, this is this is what is going to be needed

1:24 for them to get the investments to push this club even forward.

1:27 Tom, this is a Villa side that started off the season poorly.

1:30 They didn't have a win in their first six

1:32 games across all competitions to start the season this year.

1:34 So, seeing now that they're about to go to the final in Europa League,

1:38 is that that big of a shock to you?

1:41 It's it's not a shock in a vacuum, right?

1:43 This is an excellent manager and a very, very good team.

1:46 Like Charlie laid out,

1:47 they got to the suit run in the Champions League last year.

1:50 They brought back a lot of the squad.

1:52 Maybe they didn't add as much as we thought they [music] may have needed,

1:55 but this is a really, really strong team.

1:57 And that early run of form was a blip,

2:00 and it's interesting that it comes when there wasn't

2:02 fixture congestion at the early part of the season,

2:04 particularly when you're juggling these competitions,

2:06 and maybe you don't have uh a squad as deep or as lucrative as Arsenal,

2:10 Manchester City, Liverpool, the traditional big guns in this league.

2:14 You're really wanting to pick up nine points after your first

2:16 three games because it's going to get harder and harder.

2:19 What this team has been able to do is via pitch

2:22 control and directness that is is in It's on purpose, right?

2:27 It's not just long balls that are loose.

2:29 You look at one of the the John McGinn goal,

2:31 the last one where he went near post.

2:32 It was really well worked, and it just This is a perfect manager for this club.

2:38 The fit could not be better.

2:39 He's not a a guy He He He coached PSG and Arsenal in the past.

2:44 Aston Villa, Villarreal, Sevilla.

2:46 What he does to elevate these clubs,

2:48 there are not many managers in the world who can do what he does.

2:51 We know Villa supporters are obviously going to be

2:53 rooting for their team in the Europa League final,

2:56 but I think also there's fans of other Premier League teams,

2:59 most notably Bournemouth, Brentford, and Brighton,

3:01 because Aston Villa right now sits fifth in the Premier League.

3:04 Charlie, we were talking about this.

3:05 They're fifth in the Premier League, which is a Champions League spot.

3:07 If they win Europa League, though, then that CHAMPIONS LEAGUE [laughter]

3:13 BUT FOR THIS TO WORK, THEY WOULD HAVE TO FINISH FIFTH.

3:16 YEAH, so they'd have to finish fifth.

3:17 They're only in fifth on goal differential with Liverpool.

3:20 Now, Villa play at Burnley, which you would expect them to win.

3:23 Then they play Liverpool, then they play at Manchester City.

3:26 So, let's just say they only had three points.

3:29 So, that brings you to 61 uh 62 points.

3:33 Liverpool has Chelsea, they're at Aston Villa, and they have Brentford.

3:36 So, it it feels like with that schedule,

3:39 Liverpool probably have the upper hand, and so they would finish fourth.

3:43 Now, on underneath Bournemouth, Brentford, Brighton,

3:46 Bournemouth at Fulham, Manchester City, at Nottingham Forest.

3:50 That Nottingham Forest game,

3:51 that that could potentially be a a relegation implication with that.

3:57 So, it could be much more difficult than than you think.

4:00 And then Brentford at Metro City, Palace, and then Liverpool.

4:03 It just feels a little too tough of a schedule to catch.

4:07 But then Brighton on the outside, Wolves home,

4:11 at Leeds, and then Man United at home.

4:13 Brighton could sneak up at the very

4:16 minimum into that Conference League position.

4:19 So, it'll be interesting the way this finishes,

4:21 but You're not giving Chelsea a chance, Chuck?

4:23 No, I'm not giving [laughter]

4:25 Unfortunately, I think everyone's written them out.

4:28 But Aaron, if you So, Charlie's broken it down for us.

4:31 That sixth place could potentially get

4:33 a Champions League spot between Bournemouth, Brentford, and Brighton.

4:36 Which one Which one do you want to see in Champions League?

4:39 Which one I want to see?

4:40 I really like the way that Brighton is run as a club.

4:43 The way that they develop youth, the way that they scout,

4:45 the way that they are able to sell on players and still be relevant.

4:50 So, just as a club, I really like Brighton how they they run things.

4:52 So, I would like to see them in Champions League in in Europe.

4:56 I really like how Bournemouth do things as well.

4:58 So, the fighting Tyler Adams, I would love to see them in Europe.

5:02 So, honestly, whoever of those clubs make it through, I feel like obviously,

5:07 they deserve it cuz they they've gotten there on their own merits,

5:09 but I would like to see one of those two clubs make it into Europe.

5:13 Yeah.

5:13 I I see, yeah.

5:15 I would love to see Bournemouth in the Champions League.

5:17 Are you kidding me?

5:18 Tyler Adams in the Champions League, but it's interesting because Aston Villa,

5:23 as as much as they're they're they're

5:25 pushing for trophies and and Champions spots,

5:29 what happens with a a player like Morgan Rogers?

5:32 Who is on the the radar of all these top clubs.

5:36 Do Do you stay?

5:37 Do you go?

5:38 You know, and and that and and the trickle-down

5:40 effect of some of the top players.

5:42 What's in the new contract?

5:46 [laughter] I want to talk about the other semifinal

5:47 that we saw yesterday Europa League who Aston Villa

5:49 will be going up against it's Freiburg who

5:51 were able to beat Braga in that semi-final match.

5:54 So that leads us to our guy go feel

5:56 good moment because this is definitely a feel good moment.

6:00 Freiburg is a club that was founded over 120

6:02 years ago and they have had no major trophies [music] in their history.

6:07 So you can imagine that the fans in the club

6:09 are desperate in wanting to get their hands on a trophy.

6:12 This is their first major European final.

6:15 They have the chance to lift the [music] trophy.

6:17 Tom this is truly this is one of those times where we love what we do.

6:23 This is why we love what [music] we do for these stories like this.

6:26 They have a once-in-a-lifetime chance not just because Freiburg have

6:30 not been to this stage before and and the magical

6:32 run that they're on but their best players

6:34 are probably going to get picked off this summer.

6:36 That's just how football works.

6:37 So Except for Vincenzo Grifo who is a lifelong and he's been there for so long.

6:42 He's got he's got the class the experience he's come up big for them

6:47 in those in those moments where they need that player

6:49 to step up and this is a well-coached side.

6:53 They're going to come in and feel like hey we can win this trophy.

6:55 It's it's one match.

6:57 The pressure's not really on them.

6:59 It's it's on Villa.

6:59 It's on Unai Emery.

7:00 So I also have a small sports for Freiburg

7:03 because I interviewed Matthias Ginter like 10 years

7:06 ago when he was at Borussia Mönchengladbach and he

7:08 was like a cult figure in Football Manager.

7:11 If you guys ever played that growing up he was like one of those wonder kids if

7:14 you I would sign every single year and I

7:16 told him about that in the in the interview.

7:18 He's like I love that.

7:19 I also played Football Manager.

7:20 I also signed myself.

7:23 [laughter] So I got a soft spot for him.

7:24 I got a soft spot for Freiburg.

7:30 [laughter] How much chance do you give Freiburg for the upset cuz I feel like it

7:34 probably works in their favor that all

7:36 the pressure's really on Villa coming into this match.

7:38 Well it definitely has an effect but for Aston

7:41 Villa you have Unai Emery leading the charge.

7:44 He's won this competition and it they they're

7:46 going to come in with everything in that first

7:48 half to try and score early to break

7:50 down uh this Freiburg side who've been extremely resilient.

7:54 Yeah, absolutely.

7:55 Incredible story over in the Europa League final.

7:58 We are going to take a quick break here though on Morning Footy.