Emery: 'Winning against Arsenal will be the next step'

After defeating Man City earlier this week, manager Unai Emery wants Aston Villa to maintain their stability and perform even better when they host Arsenal in the 16th round of the Premier League.

"My challenge is to be better every day than yesterday and better tomorrow than today. I won't stop," Emery said on December 8th in the pre-match press conference. "I want tomorrow to be another step forward, against the best club in the Premier League, with Arsenal currently at the top of the table. We want to be at this level and compete on equal terms with the strongest clubs. It's a tough challenge, but that's also our ambition."

Aston Villa made headlines by dominating and beating Man City 1-0, setting a record of 14 consecutive home wins in the Premier League. Aston Villa had 22 shots on goal, 11 times more than the reigning champions, and successfully won possession in the final third of the pitch 13 times.

Coach Unai Emery directs the match between Aston Villa and Man City, defeating them 1-0 in the 15th round of the Premier League at Villa Park on December 6. Photo: Reuters

With this victory, Emery's team also overtook Man City for third place, now with 32 points after 15 rounds, two and four points behind Liverpool and Arsenal respectively. This was Aston Villa's best start to a season since 1980-1981, when they won the English league title with 60 points. The following season, they continued their success by winning the European Cup, with a 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich in the final at De Kuip, Rotterdam.

Emery said Aston Villa played well against Man City, enjoyed the victory with their fans, but needed to come back down to earth and focus on the match against Arsenal. The 52-year-old coach wants his players to perform more consistently, recalling Aston Villa's 2-2 draw at Bournemouth a few days before the win against Man City. He also emphasized that Aston Villa can only be considered a top-four contender if they can maintain their current position until round 32.

Today's match at Villa Park is also an opportunity for Emery to reunite with his former club. He was appointed by Arsenal in late May 2018 to succeed legendary Arsene Wenger, who had managed the "Gunners" for over 23 years – the longest tenure in the club's history. However, the Spanish coach only lasted 17 months before handing over the position to Mikel Arteta – Arsenal's current manager.

In his only full season in charge, Emery led Arsenal to the Europa League final, but they lost 1-4 to Chelsea. Otherwise, Arsenal finished fifth in the Premier League, were eliminated in the fourth round of the FA Cup, and were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the League Cup. In total, Emery managed Arsenal for 78 matches, losing 19, drawing 16, and winning 43 – a win rate of 55.13%.

When asked about his time at the Emirates Stadium, Emery replied: "I've had experience working at many different clubs and in different countries, and of course at Arsenal, that was very important. I always try to learn from the players and coaching staff I work with. The experiences I've gained at Arsenal and other clubs across Europe are very important to me now and for the future."

Besides reaching the Europa League final, Emery's most significant achievement at Arsenal was giving Bukayo Saka a chance when he was just 18 years old. The English midfielder is now an irreplaceable key player and recently set a record as the youngest player to reach 200 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal.

Emery said Arsenal have always had very promising players in their academy and his responsibility as manager is to try to give them opportunities. The Spanish coach praised Saka as a talented, humble player who continues to develop strongly under Arteta.

Hong Duy

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