Emiliano Martinez is a master at winding up opponents, supporters and maybe even his own coaches and team-mates. At times, he can be a right pain in the neck. He is also capable of making saves that take your breath away.
True, Martinez could not keep out Chris Wood’s nerveless second-half penalty that gives Nottingham Forest a narrow lead over Aston Villa heading into next week’s second leg. But without his stunning stop from Igor Jesus in the first half, Forest would already be thinking about the Final against Braga or Freiburg in Istanbul.
As it is, Villa will be quietly confident that they can overturn this deficit next week. With their Premier League game against Tottenham happening nearly 24 hours before Forest’s trip to Chelsea, they will have extra recovery time. And unlike Villa, Forest are still worrying about Premier League survival.
But if Villa do keep alive Unai Emery’s dream of a fifth Europa League title, they owe Martinez a case of the finest Argentinian Malbec. It would be no surprise if Martinez left Villa this summer and he will want to depart on a high. If he does so, they will still be talking about the save from Jesus for decades to come.
Forest will be pretty happy, though. They were without key players here and still managed to claim an advantage, with Elliot Anderson again outstanding in midfield. This was some occasion between two former European Cup winners and it will be even better at Villa Park with so much at stake. Roll on next Thursday.
Villa are likely to finish in the Premier League’s top five and Forest would be happy just to be fifth bottom but there was nothing to separate the sides before the break.
Nottingham Forest won a tense first leg against Aston Villa at the City Ground on Thursday
Forest were awarded a penalty for handball against Lucas Digne following a VAR intervention
Emery had set Villa up in a 4-2-2-2, with Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers face to face with Nikola Milenkovic and Morato, the latter in the team because Murillo and Jair Cunha are injured. Forest boss Vitor Pereira was also without key midfielder Ibrahim Sangare.
The start matched the nerve-shaking atmosphere as Rogers’ shot was blocked by Neco Williams and then at the other end Jesus took Omari Hutchinson’s cross away from team-mate Chris Wood as he shaped to shoot.
Though there were few clear chances, the organisation and commitment from both teams was excellent. Youri Tielemans robbed Jesus and when he took a return pass, Stefan Ortega moved well to keep out the Belgian’s 20-yard effort.
Both coaches seemed to have told their sides to take only calculated risks in possession. If so, Ola Aina had not read the script as the Forest defender’s header back towards Ortega was so nearly intercepted by Emi Buendia. The City Ground exhaled as one.
Amadou Onana had been a fitness doubt before this game and he showed his importance to Villa with a series of shuddering tackles, one of which left Hutchinson in a heap. Seconds later, Matty Cash did just enough to stop Morgan Gibbs-White meeting Jesus’ cross. Back came Villa, winning the ball high and once more Ortega rescued his side with a sharp stop from Rogers.
Gibbs-White was drifting further infield to try to collect possession as the duels in midfield cranked up a notch. Anderson somehow avoided a booking for a follow-through that speared Watkins on the ankle. No wonder referee Joao Pinheiro’s light touch brought a grin from Anderson, who had earlier nutmegged his England pal Rogers.
Then came Martinez’s moment. The Argentine made one of the saves of the season here last year, from Nicolas Dominguez, and this was possibly even better. Anderson’s chip found Gibbs-White and Jesus volleyed the cross goalwards from eight yards. Not only did Martinez block it, he recovered quickly enough to stop the ball rolling over the line. Sensational stuff.
Though Watkins was looking sharp, he was given nothing by the officials. After the Anderson tackle, Watkins was then barged over by Dominguez as he bore down on goal.
Wood fired home from the spot to give Forest the lead on the night and in the semi-final
It was a game of few chances but Emi Martinez did have to be at his best to deny Igor Jesus
By now the Villa forward was understandably grumpy and sure enough, close to half-time, he barrelled towards Anderson like an angry rhinoceros and flattened him with a classic late lunge. Despite his Forest connections, Roy Keane would have been proud of that one.
So often interrupted by injury, Onana had to throw in the towel 10 minutes into the second half after producing a vital defensive header. The former Everton man had been excellent and this was a chance for Forest to push on. Instead, Ortega bailed them out again, this time from Watkins’ instinctive close-range volley.
These days, it seems impossible to have a game without VAR taking centre stage. So when Hutchinson tried to turn the ball back into the box and it hit Lucas Digne’s raised arm, well knew what was coming. Players milled about during the inevitable delay. Vitor Pereira had to calm his assistant Luis Miguel as he danced about the technical area, whacking his own forearm.
Sure enough, Pinheiro headed for the monitor and – of course – he gave the kick. Not even Martinez could keep that one out as Wood hammered it into the top corner. The Forest bench raced down the touchline to celebrate with their colleagues as Emery urged his players to take a deep breath. They tried to respond quickly and Digne swung over a cross that Rogers could not guide on target.
Both dugouts knew how fine the margins were and during a break in play, Pereira beckoned Gibbs-White to the sideline to show him a sheaf of notes. The final chapters of this fascinating tale have still to be written.
