Aston Villa Win Europa League – Guessand's Unique Chance at History

Aston Villa finally have their hands on major silverware again. Under the Istanbul lights, Unai Emery’s side dismantled Freiburg 3-0 to lift the Europa League and end a trophy drought stretching back to 1996.

They did it with style.

Youri Tielemans set the tone, thundering Villa in front with a superb strike, the kind of goal that silences a stadium for a split second before the noise crashes back in. Emiliano Buendia then bent the night further Villa’s way with another stunning finish before half-time, a second blow that Freiburg never truly recovered from.

When Morgan Rogers swept in a third on 57 minutes, the contest felt done. Villa controlled the rhythm, pressed when they wanted to, passed when they pleased. The German side chased shadows; Emery’s men chased history.

They caught it.

For Emery, this was a familiar stage and a familiar outcome. The win draws him level as the most successful manager in Europa League history, his fifth triumph in the competition underlining a dominance few coaches can match in European knockout football.

But beneath the headlines and the confetti, another story is unfolding. One that barely flickered into view in Istanbul.

The absent forward with a unique shot at history

Evann Guessand was nowhere near the pitch at Besiktas Park. No late cameo, no warm-up on the touchline, not even in the matchday squad. Yet the Ivory Coast international stands on the brink of something no player has ever achieved in European football.

Guessand arrived at Villa last summer from Reims for an initial £30.5 million, one of only two permanent senior signings the club made in that window. On paper, a key part of the project. In reality, his season has been scattered across two clubs, two competitions, and now potentially two trophies.

His first act came in claret and blue. During the Europa League group stage, the 24-year-old featured seven times for Villa, scoring twice and playing his part in the club’s march into the knockouts. Those minutes matter. They make him eligible for a winners’ medal after this triumph in Istanbul.

Then his season took a sharp turn.

In January, Villa sent Guessand on loan to Crystal Palace, a move that looked routine at the time but has since turned into a remarkable subplot. At Selhurst Park, he helped Palace surge through the Europa Conference League, making five appearances on their run to the final, where they will face Rayo Vallecano next Wednesday.

The equation is simple and staggering: Villa have already won the Europa League. Palace now stand 90 minutes – or more – from the Conference League crown. If Palace finish the job, Guessand will have winners’ medals from two different European competitions in the same season.

No one has ever done that.

Injury scare, late return, and a date with destiny

The chase almost ended early. Guessand suffered a knee injury in March during the Conference League quarter-final against Fiorentina, a cruel twist just as the stakes rose. His momentum stalled, his season threatened to fizzle out on the treatment table.

He refused to let it.

Guessand battled back and returned to action at the weekend, coming on as a stoppage-time substitute in Palace’s 2-2 draw with Brentford. Only a few minutes, but enough to show he is fit, available, and ready if called upon for the final.

Whether he starts, comes off the bench, or watches from the sidelines, his contribution across the campaign has already ensured he qualifies for a medal if Palace win. The history books do not ask how many minutes you played in the final. They simply record your name.

There is another twist looming this summer. The 24-year-old is reportedly set to join Palace permanently, just as the club prepares for life after departing manager Oliver Glasner. A new home, a new project, and possibly a move sealed in the afterglow of an unprecedented double.

Villa’s night in Istanbul belonged to Tielemans, Buendia, Rogers, and Emery. The cameras stayed with the champions, as they should.

But somewhere between Birmingham and south London, between a Europa League medal already earned and a Conference League final still to come, Evann Guessand waits on the edge of a slice of history no one else has ever tasted.