Forest still lead by a single goal at home to 10-man Porto, while Braga have scored twice in quick succession to lead Betis 3-2 in Seville.

54 mins: Rogers goes over after tangling with a defender under a high ball, but is penalised for handball.

51 mins: Orsolini has a shot on goal which is deflected behind, and nothing comes of the corner as Bologna try to give their travelling fans something to cheer.

Over in the Conference League, Rayo Vallecano kicked off in Greece with a 3-0 first-leg lead – but it’s been wiped out, Zini’s second goal putting AEK 3-0 up on the night, and level on aggregate.

49 mins: Castro has a shot from the edge of the area that is well struck, but never troubling Emi Martinez.

47 mins: There may be another change coming up for the visitors – Vitik has stayed down after a collision.

46 mins: Freuler, João Mario and Bernardeschi have gone off; Riccardo Orsolini, Simon Sohm and Nadir Zortea come on.

“It’s time the Europa League is renamed the Emery Cup,” writes Krishna Moorthy. If we’re talking about renaming the actual trophy, I’m in total agreement.

Conference League latest:
AEK Athens 2-0 Rayo Vallecano (HT, 2-3 agg)
Fiorentina 1-1 Crystal Palace (HT, 1-4 agg)
Strasbourg 2-0 Mainz (HT, 2-2 agg)
AZ 2-2 Shakhtar Donetsk (FT, 2-5 agg)

Europa League latest:
Aston Villa 3-0 Bologna (HT, 6-1 agg)
Betis 2-1 Braga (HT, 3-2 agg)
Nottingham Forest 1-0 Porto (HT, 2-1 agg)
Celta Vigo 1-3 Freiburg (FT, 1-6 agg)

45 mins: Two added minutes.

44 mins: There’s another big appeal for handball as Bologna frantically try to get the ball clear – but nothing doing this time. Replays suggest that Joao Mario’s arm didn’t touch the ball.

43 mins: Cash gets upfield and sends in a cross that is cleared behind for a corner …

So, Villa lead 6-1 on aggregate despite Bologna causing plenty of problems, particularly in the first leg. But while the Italian side look good going forward, they have been shocking defensively.

Ravaglia is beaten at his near post again as Rogers collects McGinn’s pass on the left, takes a touch and finishes with the necessary aplomb.

37 mins: Rowe does find a pocket of space now, and sends a dangerous cross towards the far post, where forward Santiago Castro can’t quite reach it.

35 mins: Rowe again tries to make something happen out wide, but Cash is able to contain him …

34 mins: Did you know that Federico Bernardeschi was given the nickname “Brunelleschi” (after a famous Florentine architect) while at Fiorentina? Now you do. No, not much is happening.

32 mins: Bernardeschi chases a through ball under pressure from Digne, then remonstrates with the assistant in the classic Italian style. He needs to be careful, having just been booked.

Fiorentina have pulled one back against Palace thanks to Albert Gudmundsson’s penalty – but they’re still 4-1 down on aggregate.

32 mins: Rowe does well to keep the ball in from a Bologna free kick, but Villa’s defence get it away.

30 mins: Shooooooot, the home fans urge Lucas Digne, who has a go but slips and sends the ball straight to a Bologna player. No harm done.

29 mins: If Bologna arrived here with faint hopes, the jig is pretty much up already. Bernardeschi goes in the book for a clumsy late challenge on Amadou Onana.

“Billy Bremner and Billy McNeil were captains of Leeds and Celtic in the European Cup in 1970. Celtic won the tie 2-1, and 3-1 on aggregate” writes Bill Laidlaw. Now that was a proper football match.

22 mins: Penalty check! Digne swings in a cross, which Vitik clears away from Rogers – but the ball struck his arm on the way through, and the referee is heading to the monitor.

20 mins: Bernardeschi hits another well-struck but central effort that Martinez parries away. Over in Florence, Crystal Palace lead 1-0, and 4-0 on aggregate – Ismaila Sarr with the goal.

18 mins: Rogers gets free again and forces Ravaglia into a solid save, springing to his left. Villa were barely simmering before that goal, but have turned up the heat with frightening speed.

There were 14 passes leading up to the goal, Rogers combining beautifully with Buendia before cutting the ball back perfectly for Watkins to slam it home.

“I shall be among 1,057 pedants to tell you your Scottish captains question happened at least once before in Europe … in the first leg last week,” honks Benjamin Gravestock (and no other pedants).

13 mins: Rowe again looks to make in-roads from the left, and shimmies into the penalty area before Cash gets across to intercept.

Who will the winners face in the semi-final? The odds on Nottingham Forest have sharpened significantly – they lead 1-0 at home to Porto, who have seen Jan Bednarek sent off!

11 mins: Bernardeschi stings Martinez’s palms with a decent effort from the edge of the area. It’s been a positive start from the visitors, who need to win by two goals just to force extra time.

“I thought the first round of the 1978-79 European Cup, where Liverpool played Nottingham Forest, may have given us two Scottish captains of non-Scottish sides – Graeme Souness and John McGovern respectively,” writes Tony Hughes.

“It appears that Emlyn Hughes was still captain back then, though – Souness had to wait until 1981-82 season.” You might argue that if Souey’s in your dressing room, he’s the captain in all but name.

9 mins: Rowe bustles in from the left flank and sees his shot charged down, before Villa get a free kick for a foul on Digne. It’s greeted with ironic cheers from the crowd, who have seen too many calls go Bologna’s way in the first, er, nine minutes.

7 mins: Lovely play by Watkins at the byline, cutting past a defender and finding Rogers. His cut-back evades Tielemans, leaving Pau Torres to hit a speculator high over the bar.

5 mins: Matty Cash stands up to Jonathan Rowe’s first attempted foray down Villa’s right, and the ball is out for a goal kick. Rowe caused plenty of problems in the first leg, and will be one to watch tonight.

3 mins: A few Villa players are a yellow card away from suspension: Cash, Rogers, McGinn, Digne and substitute Victor Lindelof. Bookings are wiped out for the semi-finals, but suspensions aren’t, so all five must tread carefully.

2 mins: Emi Buendia tries to bend one on target from the edge of the area, but sees his shot blocked.

The players are in the tunnel, with captains McGinn and Ferguson enjoying some pre-match patter. Villa fans have unveiled what I can only describe as a Renaissance-themed tifo. It’s bubbling up nicely.

Some pre-game thoughts from Unai Emery: “We got a good result [in Bologna], but it’s not done. It’s going to be difficult, we respect them, but we are confident with our great supporters behind us.”

He adds that experience of near misses – losing to Olympiakos in the semi-finals, finishing sixth in the league last term – is galvanising his players. “Of course, Champions League is the best gift we can achieve. We are excited, we are motivated.”

As dozens of TV ads paid for by bookmakers relentlessly advise me to take a break from betting, I can report that it’s finished Celta 1-3 Freiburg (1-6 on agg) in the Europa League, and AZ 2-2 Shakhtar (2-5 on agg) in the Conference League.

I noticed on the team sheets that both of tonight’s captains are Scottish: John McGinn and Lewis Ferguson. Has this ever happened before in a European tie – particularly one not featuring a Scottish team? Hey, it’s like a live Knowledge, this. Just don’t ask me anything.

In tonight’s early game, Freiburg are cruising into the semi-finals – after winning 3-0 at home to Celta Vigo last week, they’re repeating the trick in Spain to lead 6-0 on aggregate. The Bundesliga side will face either Real Betis or Braga in the final four.

In the Conference League, AZ have just levelled to make it 1-1 at home to Shakhtar Donetsk; sadly for the hosts, they lost the first leg 3-0, so are very much heading out. Shakhtar will face Crystal Palace in the semis unless Fiorentina can pull off a spectacular comeback from three goals down in Italy this evening.