Istanbul (AFP) - Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has insisted he is not the “king” of the Europa League despite bidding to win the competition for a fifth time when his side face Freiburg in Wednesday’s final in Istanbul.

Emery has overseen a revival in the 1982 European champions’ fortunes, guiding the Premier League club to the Conference League semi-finals in 2024 and the quarter-finals of last season’s Champions League.

Villa are now just one game away from lifting their first major trophy since winning the 1996 League Cup.

Spanish boss Emery is considered something of a Europa League specialist after winning the competition three times with Sevilla and once while in charge of Villarreal.

He also finished as a Europa League runner-up during his spell as Arsenal boss.

“I am not a king in this competition,” Emery said at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday.

“I need to win tomorrow with the players we have now, with Aston Villa now, with the opponent we face tomorrow. So it’s a new way, a new moment and hopefully a new era.

“I don’t want to speak a lot about the things we did before.

“Now, this year, and the matches we played before in the Conference League or in the Champions League, and they are showing the capacity to play at a high level.”

Emery has been a transformative figure at Villa since succeeding Steven Gerrard as manager in 2022.

He has turned a relegation-threatened side into one that has now qualified for the Champions League in two of the last three seasons.

Emery urged his side to use Wednesday’s final as an opportunity to underline how far the club has progressed in recent years.

“This is a process. A process (for) how we could achieve, building the team and our structure,” he said.

“Now it’s a new experience we will have tomorrow. It’s very important how we manage our emotions and we’ve done it for a lot of matches and there are a lot of emotions.”

- ‘A huge challenge’ -

Freiburg have never won a trophy in their history or qualified for the Champions League, but a win in Istanbul would achieve both targets.

Freiburg boss Julian Schuster conceded the German side are heavy underdogs in their first European final, and was quick to praise Emery’s men.

“It’s just incredible how they work together and look harmonious. They have a clear plan in any individual phase in the match and have many players, a good mix of experience and young talented boys,” he said.

“There are many things where you can copy and learn things. It will be a huge and great challenge tomorrow.”

Schuster is a big fan of the meticulous Emery and sought out the Spaniard for a chat at the Besiktas Stadium in between their teams’ training sessions on Tuesday.

“If you can look at him, you can learn a lot from what he expects and the energy he has on the pitch every time,” the 41-year-old said.

“All these coaches with big experiences, for every young coach it is important to listen to them. Of course every moment I have the option to ask such coaches, I will.”

Insisting Freiburg have a chance to upset the odds despite his admiration for Emery, Schuster added: “I have to speak believing in trust and have confidence. The focus is on our own strength, but accept the quality of the opponent.”