Chris Wood hasn't missed a penalty in a decade—and now he's back to finish the job he started. The Nottingham Forest striker, fresh off a six-month injury layoff, delivered a clinical spot-kick to give his side a narrow 1-0 lead over Aston Villa in their Europa League semi-final first leg. For a man who scored 20 goals last season only to see Forest miss out on Champions League qualification on the final day, this feels like redemption in the making.

Wood's penalty—a thunderous strike past World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emi Martinez—was his 200th career goal and the kind of cool-headed moment that defines cup football. It came after a baffling handball from Aston Villa's Lucas Digne, giving Wood the chance with 19 minutes left. The City Ground crowd erupted when he stepped up, perhaps remembering that teammate Morgan Gibbs-White had missed two penalties earlier this season. There was no such drama here: Wood hasn't missed from 12 yards since April 2016.

Forest boss Vitor Pereira calls Wood "the last piece of the puzzle," and it's easy to see why. The New Zealand international missed the entire reign of former manager Sean Dyche after going under the knife for a knee issue in December. He only returned this month, starting the quarter-final first-leg draw in Porto three weeks ago. Now, with Forest holding a slender advantage heading to Villa Park for the second leg, Wood's return could be the difference between another near-miss and a trip to Istanbul for the final.

The winner of this tie will face either Braga or Freiburg on May 20, with Braga holding a 2-1 lead from the other semi-final. For Wood, a player who has spent more time in the treatment room than on the pitch this season, the opportunity to lead Forest to the Champions League—and cap a campaign that looked lost—is a story worth watching. As he put it himself: "It's cup competitions. They come down to small margins." This time, those margins might just fall his way.