Freiburg, Germany -- Freiburg advanced to the Europa League final with a dominant 3-1 victory over 10-man Braga on Thursday, securing a 4-3 aggregate win. Lukas Kuebler scored twice to send the German side to its first European final.
The hosts will face Aston Villa in Istanbul on May 20. Villa advanced after defeating Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate.
Braga was reduced to 10 men in the seventh minute when Mario Dorgeles was shown a red card for taking down Jan-Niklas Beste, who had broken through the offside trap.
Freiburg took a fortuitous lead in the 19th minute when an attempted clearance ricocheted off Kuebler and bounced in off the post.
Johan Manzambi doubled the lead four minutes before halftime, curling a powerful strike into the far corner from outside the box.
Kuebler sealed the win with a header from Vincenzo Grifo's free kick in the 72nd minute. Braga's Pau Victor pulled one back from close range late on, but Freiburg held firm.
The visitors pressed hard in the final minutes, but goalkeeper Noah Atubolu made a crucial save from Gabri Martinez to seal the historic win.