Credit: Imago

Cameron Smith

Tue 19 May 2026 7:10, UK

Aston Villa are on the verge of making history as they prepare to face Freiburg in the Europa League final on Wednesday night.

The Villans kicked off this pivotal spell in impressive style on Friday with a 4-2 victory over Liverpool.

Ollie Watkins netted twice at Villa Park, while excellent finishes from Morgan Rogers and John McGinn came either side of his goals.

That result secured a return to the Champions League with a match to spare, easing recent worries after an inconsistent run of form.

Now, as Villa contest their first final in 11 years, there are two Freiburg players Unai Emery’s side will need to watch closely in Istanbul.

Vincenzo Grifo is Freiburg’s talisman

For Freiburg, few players are bigger legends than Vincenzo Grifo.

At 33, he is no longer the dynamic winger he once was, but his wand of a right foot ensures he remains a true talisman under Schuster.

In March, he became the club’s all-time leading scorer with his 106th goal, surpassing the equally iconic Nils Petersen.

Even at his age, he has made 52 appearances for the Breisgauers this season, signifying just how important he is to the club – holding the armband as long-serving captain Christian Gunter sees out his final years at the club.

Grifo is someone in particular who represents what it is to be a Freiburg player.

Freiburg are a club 100 per cent owned by the supporters, and a club that operates on the outskirts of the Black Forest on a shoestring budget compared to their upcoming Premier League opposition.

As a result, local pride is a huge factor in recruitment, with all of Grifo, Matthias Ginter, Noah Atubolu, Max Rosenfelder, the aforementioned Gunter, and more, all from either Freiburg or the larger Baden region stretching up towards Karlsruhe and closer to Stuttgart, where Baden becomes Swabia.

As mentioned, Grifo’s best days may be behind him, but he remains a major threat regardless of his role, with his superb right foot something Freiburg will be hoping to call upon to make the crucial difference on Wednesday.

Even so, his class is still evident, with 11 big chances created, 647 successful passes, and 62 accurate long balls from a dwindling number of 1,090 touches as Schuster looks to keep him in areas to make a difference.

After disappointing spells elsewhere, the German-born Italian was welcomed home with open arms and has become synonymous with the club in the modern era – a side consistently competing at the top end of the division and always among the favourites to secure a European spot.

Johan Manzambi is the next in line on Freiburg development mill

If Grifo and his age-mates represent one half of what it means to be a Freiburg player, youngster Johan Manzambi embodies the other.

Having joined from the Servette academy, the 20-year-old attacking midfielder rose through the ranks at the Europa-Park Stadion before beginning to make a name for himself at the end of the 2024-25 season, playing a huge part in the run of form that saw Schuster’s side narrowly miss out on Champions League football.

Emerging as something of a beautifully naive enigma, the now Swiss international is simply always looking to make something happen.

Capable of receiving the ball in all sorts of situations, Manzambi has continued to grow throughout the campaign, recording 33 successful dribbles, 78 fouls won, and 179 duels won.

Skewing his attacking numbers, the attacker by trade has had to operate in a deeper midfield role for periods this season due to the absence of Patrick Osterhage. His own versatility has seen him become a progressive option in deeper areas, with the calmness and positional awareness to perform at a high level.

Alongside Derry Scherhant, Yuito Suzuki, Cyriaque Irie, and the aforementioned Rosenfelder and Atubolu, Manzambi sits at the heart of a young core, earning plaudits as the highest-rated of the group since Merlin Rohl’s summer move to Everton.

With non-stop energy and the youthful exuberance to always play on the front foot, Manzambi contrasts Grifo’s class and elegance perfectly, with the pair likely to be the ones to cause trouble for Villa on Wednesday.

If Emery is to avoid falling to a European upset on Wednesday, Grifo and Manzambi are the Freiburg men to watch out for.