The huge problem for Uefa with English domination of Europe

As tends to be the case with Unai Emery in the Europa League , his team are coming into form at exactly the right time. An often laborious 2026 for Aston Villa has suddenly enjoyed release. Working on limited resources relative to the top of the Premier League , Emery has got it close to spot on .

Villa are suddenly flying just before their biggest game in 44 years. They thrashed Nottingham Forest to get to this Europa League final against Freiburg and then put in one of the performances of the season in shredding Liverpool , scoring four goals in each game. Villa will rightly fancy themselves.

This was precisely why Emery was appointed, to take them to these levels; to make them dream. Aston Villa look ready to win the Europa League (Getty) The Basque might well secure Villa's first continental silverware since the 1982 European Cup, and first trophy at all in 30 years, while also winning his own sixth Europa League. And yet that remarkable latter record isn’t the only trend here.

A week later, Crystal Palace may win their own first ever European trophy, in the form of the Conference League . Unai Emery has Villa dreaming of glory (Reuters) Crystal Palace could also claim a European trophy in the Conference League (PA) Last year, Tottenham Hotspur ended their own trophy drought with the Europa League, following on from West Ham United with the Conference League in 2023. And it’s because of such feats that all of Brentford, Brighton, Bournemouth and even Sunderland should now be thinking similar about next season.