Aston Villa are flying under Unai Emery. How high can they go?
Aston Villa have won their last 11 home games in the Premier League. It’s fun to be a Villa fan right now, watching the team enjoy their best start in the league for 25 years. They have not tasted defeat at Villa Park since a 4-2 loss to Arsenal in February and even then it took two goals in second-half injury time to succumb to defeat. Unai Emery has turned Villa Park into a fortress and supporters are loving every second.
With European football also back in the Midlands, this season promises to be an exciting one. Villa were 17th when Steven Gerrard was sacked a year ago. Emery came in and guided them to a seventh-placed finish. The team improved dramatically, winning 10 of their last 15 games. Fans hoped they would keep getting better after a full pre-season under the watchful eye of the Spaniard. The hope is becoming a reality. They beat West Ham 4-1 on Sunday to go fifth in the table.
Playing in the Conference League could have been an energy-sapping distraction this season, but Villa have taken European football in their stride, with Emery coaxing the best from his players. Villa have invested heavily in their squad over the last few years, gradually improving in a number of areas across the pitch. However, it wasn’t until Emery took over a year ago that the club finally began to see a return on their investment.
The owners backed Emery in the transfer market this summer, but Villa’s rise is not just a product of their signings. The manager has transformed the performances of the players who were already at the club when Gerrard was manager. The new signings are being led by the old guard so to speak, with Ollie Watkins and Douglas Luiz – both of whom arrived during Dean Smith’s time in charge – their standout players this season.
Watkins has been the main beneficiary of Emery’s appointment. His goal and assist in the win over West Ham at the weekend mean he is the only player in the Premier League to have scored at least five goals and provided at least five assists this season. Only Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (11) has been directly involved in more goals. Emery adjusted the striker’s position when he took charge, asking the 27-year-old to remain more central rather than pulling wide. That subtle shift has worked wonders. This is Watkins’ fourth season in the Premier League yet he has scored 18 of his 45 goals in the division (40%) since Emery took charge at Villa a year ago.
Luiz has also taken his game to the next level. His two goals on Sunday mean the Brazilian has scored in Villa’s last six home matches in the league, surpassing a record set by Dwight Yorke in 1996. He has been a mainstay in the Villa team since his arrival in 2019, but the 25-year-old has only realised his potential under Emery. Luiz is not pigeonholed into a specific midfield role. Partnered alongside the more defensively diligent Boubacar Kamara, he is the ideal all-round midfielder in Emery’s favoured 4-4-2 setup, able to shield the defence and get upfield to support the attack.
Villa were dealt a sucker punch on the opening weekend of the season when Tyrone Mings sustained an ACL injury, which was especially frustrating given that Emiliano Buendía had suffered a similar injury shortly before the campaign began. They would have struggled to cope with those setbacks in the past but Emery found the right solutions.
Pau Torres arrived from Villarreal – where he had played under Emery – and, after a slow start, he has come into his own. Nicolò Zaniolo, another summer arrival, has also delivered a series of assured displays when filling in for Buendía. Emery has replaced a player who is sidelined due to an ACL injury with another who has sustained the same injury twice in his career already.
Villa did not have this pulling power in the market a few years ago. Now that they have the right manager in charge, their signings are not just improving the starting XI but the squad as a whole. Villa’s fourth goal against West Ham on Sunday summed up the strength in their squad. Two substitutes combined as Youri Tielemans set up Leon Bailey to score. There is a healthy level of competition for starting spots and, with so much football to play given their European commitments, the fringe players are still earning regular minutes.
This is an exciting time for Villa. The recognised big six in the Premier League are looking shakier then ever, with Manchester United and Chelsea starting the season poorly. Villa have been presented with a chance to exploit the shortcomings of the established sides and they are taking it. “We are after seven teams,” said Emery on Sunday. “Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle. We were not contenders to be in the top four in the beginning but, of course, we need to take our dreams.”
Emery has given his players a target to aim for and the belief to reach it. It’s a big change from Gerrard, whose negativity sucked the life out of the club. When Chelsea visited a year ago, Gerrard said: “They should be coming to Villa Park and wiping the floor with us.” Unsurprisingly, Chelsea won that game. Gerrard was sacked later that week after another crushing defeat, going down 3-0 to Fulham. Villa have played Chelsea twice under Emery and they have won twice, with both matches at Stamford Bridge. Confidence is not everything but it goes a long way when allied to a sound tactical plan.
When Emery was appointed, he told his players: “I’m going to try to increase the level, be ambitious, be demanding. I’m not going to stop, every day, trying to get better than yesterday. And I’m not here to waste my time.” They have listened and responded. Emery is a Europa League specialist but, with an in-form Watkins leading the charge and the support cast all excelling, who is to say they can’t qualify for the Champions League?