Nottingham Forest secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Aston Villa in an all-English clash on Thursday night at the City Ground in the first leg of the Europa League semi-finals.
The first half saw a balanced contest, though the hosts held a slight edge in possession and created several dangerous chances without finding the breakthrough.
In the second half, New Zealand striker Chris Wood made the difference, converting a penalty in the 71st minute to hand Forest a crucial advantage ahead of the return leg.
The decisive second leg is scheduled for next Thursday at Villa Park, where Aston Villa will look to overturn the deficit and book a place in the final.
In another semi-final first leg, Sporting Braga claimed a dramatic 2-1 win over SC Freiburg. Goals from Ege Tıknaz and Mario Dorgeles sealed the victory, while Vincenzo Grifo scored Freiburg’s only goal.
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