Unai Emery

[curiousorange]

He strikes me as an excellent short-term option, and perfect for negotiating those middle months of the season when he's had a good look at all the other sides. His big weakness is chaos. He doesn't understand it, and can't raise his teams to meet it. Also, those nine hour meetings can't help in May when everyone's knackered.

[Toronto Villa]

That wouldn’t surprise me at all if he leaves. He never stays anywhere for more than a few years. He burns bright and then fades and we’ve seen it now the past three seasons. I’d hate it in so many ways but I’d rather that than bitterness and anger creeps in from the fans who owe him so much. Get back in the CL, hopefully win the Europa and he can leave with his head held high.

[N'ZMAV]

I'm starting to get the 'taken us as far as he can' cliché in my mind.....

Problem is - let's say he does go - someone coming in, it looks a bit of a mess, aging squad, huge wages, loads of deadwood out on loan coming back. First team players wanting to go (Rogers, Martinez)

[Villatillidie25]

I'm starting to get the 'taken us as far as he can' cliché in my mind.....

Problem is - let's say he does go - someone coming in, it looks a bit of a mess, aging squad, huge wages, loads of deadwood out on loan coming back. First team players wanting to go (Rogers, Martinez)

If we don’t get champions league we will have absolutely no financial flexibility to do the huge overhaul we actually need

[curiousorange]

Part of me is beginning to cast glances at other types of football, I must admit. I had hoped Emery would be here for years and years, cementing a Guardiola type legacy, but Guardiola would have burned these players out too because he wouldn't have the luxury of replacing them. Some of the coaches out there who appeal may not be as good as Emery but I must admit the idea of one who has a plan B is mighty appealling this evening.

[brontebilly]

I'm starting to get the 'taken us as far as he can' cliché in my mind.....

Problem is - let's say he does go - someone coming in, it looks a bit of a mess, aging squad, huge wages, loads of deadwood out on loan coming back. First team players wanting to go (Rogers, Martinez)

They want to go anyway.

We are reliant on McGinn Thursday night not Emery.

[Steve67]

To criticise him feels like heresy after what he has achieved with these players.  However, we are limping towards the end, like we have done previously, this squad needs an overhaul.  I'd like to us to play with more pace and purpose, not sure Emery wants to do that though.

[AlexAlexCropley]

Teams have ditched this slow ,slow build up from the back.Apart from us.

[PaulWinch again]

Unai has been an amazing Villa manager - and I don’t use that tense to be particularly heavy, but call a spade a spade what he and his team put out tonight was nothing short of a disgrace.

[eamonn]

He got 0xG from that half. Zero point zero zero. I'd love to learn the strategy here, and why he's so good on random Saturdays in February and so absolutely awful when it matters.

If this was Gerrard, TSM2, Bruce, Garde etc and we apparently worked all week only to have those stats against a side in the bottom 3 playing at home, you'd rightly come to the conclusion we did not work at all.

Spurs worked all week, De Zerbi drilled into their players to press us, aggressively contest duels. We started prepping yesterday after recovering from the Forest game.

[curiousorange]

Our owners won't pot Emery though, he'll have to walk away. They love him. Tbf, I do too, but increasingly it's because of where he's gotten us rather than what I'm currently seeing.

[Somniloquism]

He got 0xG from that half. Zero point zero zero. I'd love to learn the strategy here, and why he's so good on random Saturdays in February and so absolutely awful when it matters.

If this was Gerrard, TSM2, Bruce, Garde etc and we apparently worked all week only to have those stats against a side in the bottom 3 playing at home, you'd rightly come to the conclusion we did not work at all.

Spurs worked all week, De Zerbi drilled into their players to press us, aggressively contest duels. We started prepping yesterday after recovering from the Forest game.

Bless, you think we did any prep.

[Villatillidie25]

To criticise him feels like heresy after what he has achieved with these players.  However, we are limping towards the end, like we have done previously, this squad needs an overhaul.  I'd like to us to play with more pace and purpose, not sure Emery wants to do that though.

This is becoming my concern. Teams know how to stop us. We’re so predictable.
We need pace and physicality in the team and have for a couple of years. We need to accept some risk by moving the ball quickly and driving at the opposition. Our patient, baiting, football at the back only works if you can flick a switch and go for the jugular but we just play it round on horse shoes.

[N'ZMAV]

and rightfully so - he's been amazing, but maybe he's hit his ceiling?

[Brazilian Villain]

Our owners won't pot Emery though,

Nor should they.