Aston Villa: Ollie Watkins licking his lips as Nottingham Forest set for unwanted change in Europa League semi-final
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(Credit: Imago) Fri 24 April 2026 19:15, UK Aston Villa have already seen their hopes of reaching the Europa League final receive a huge boost with the news that Nottingham Forest defender Murillo is likely to be out for the first leg. Villa have their eyes on Europa League glory, and a positive result in the first game could potentially see them put one foot in the final. ⚽ Aston Villa Matchday ⚽ Team news, line-ups, expert previews and tactical analysis for every Aston Villa fixture.
VISIT THE VILLA MATCH HUB MORE FOOTBALL INSIDER STORIES Ollie Watkins to back himself to score against makeshift centre-back pairingVilla have an away trip to Fulham on the agenda first on Saturday lunchtime, but they will surely already have one eye on next week’s huge European encounter. DateCompetitionH/AResult12 April 2026Premier LeagueA1-1 D3 January 2026Premier LeagueH3-1 W5 April 2025Premier LeagueH2-1 W14 December 2024Premier LeagueA2-1 L24 February 2024Premier LeagueH4-2 WVilla’s last five games against Forest in all competitions.The Portuguese boss ruled the defender out of his side’s Friday night trip to Sunderland in his pre-match press conference, and also added: “I’m not a doctor, I cannot predict, but I think it will be more than one game.”Early expectations from the East Midlands outfit are clearly that Murillo is unlikely to be fit to face Villa, meaning that either Morato or Jair Cunha will be called upon to deputise alongside Nikola Milenkovic.
That will be music to the ears of Watkins, who has already found the back of the net with Murillo on the pitch this season, and will surely now be fancying his chances against a more makeshift centre-back pairing. Watkins has turned his future at Aston Villa on its headFormer Villa scout Mick Brown told Football Insider earlier this week that Emery may block Watkins’ exit this summer, amid recent suggestions that the club could finally take the chance to cash in on him.