Unai Emery has conquered the UEFA Europa League five times, most recently steering Aston Villa to glory in Istanbul in May — ending a 30-year wait for silverware. Yet one trophy has continued to escape him: the UEFA Super Cup. On Wednesday in Salzburg, he gets a fourth shot at the title when Villa take on UEFA Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain at Red Bull Arena.

Three attempts, three defeats

Emery's Super Cup record makes for painful reading. He has lost the competition three times — twice with Sevilla against Real Madrid and Barcelona, and once with Villarreal, who fell to Chelsea on penalties in Dublin in 2021. The defeat to Barcelona was particularly brutal: a 5-4 extra-time loss in 2015, the year after Cristiano Ronaldo's brace had handed Real Madrid the title at Sevilla's expense in 2014.

Now, with around 6,000 Villa supporters making the trip to Austria to back him against his former club Paris Saint-Germain, Emery is eager to write a different ending. Even Villa captain John McGinn has been ribbing him about the Chelsea defeat.