Unai Emery issues rallying cry ahead of Aston Villa's Europa League semi final

Unai Emery has launched a rallying cry to his Aston Villa supporters ahead of their blockbuster Europa League semi final second leg tonight.

Looking to overturn a 1-0 first leg defeat, Aston Villa will have to be on top form in order to defeat a Nottingham Forest side in sensational form of late.

Both sides heavily rotated in their most recent Premier League match, with the Villans performing woefully as a result, losing 2-1 at home to a relegation threatened Tottenham Hotspur.

Despite this, Villa still head into this match with hope and expectation of reaching a first European final since 1982, having won all of their home matches in the Europa League so far this campaign.

Posted via the club's official social media accounts, Emery has issued a statement calling on the fans to play their part in the contest.

The statement read: "Good evening and welcome to Villa Park. Tonight we all know what needs to be done. Something future generations will always remember."

"One last push to reach the final at a full and loud Villa Park. All together, fans and players" it continued.

Emery also called on fans to "do your part and enjoy the moment" before stating that "nothing more needs to be said"

The statement ends with a simple line "Up The Villa!"

While fans online had begun to show signs of a lack of belief ahead of arguably the biggest game of their season, this rallying cry from their inspirational manager could be the motivation that the fans needed to get behind their players one more time.

Aston Villa's second leg will take place at Villa Park tonight, with kick off set for 20:00 BST.