Unai Emery

[paul_e]

The thing is I don't think it's possibly to overperform for that long a period. You can exceed expectations and, as players, you can push your ceiling higher than people thought but, for me at least, over-performing is a purple patch of form, not 3 1/2 years of being in the mix for the top 4.

It's semantics but I think people instinctively see over-performing as somehow not being deserving of how well you've done and that feels insulting, even if it wasn't really intended that way.

[Smithy]

The most consistent long-term indicator of where a team will finish in the league, is the wage bill.  The teams with the highest wages, finish higher.   Season-to-season there are the odd blips, but over time, teams regress to their position in the wage bill table. 

Our wages bill has been 7th for the last couple of years (unless it's changed recently?).  So finishing higher than 7th, is, in my opinion 'overperforming'.  There will come a time when our finances have improved such that our wages are comparable with the top 4, and then we can 'expect' Champions League and title challenges each season - but right now, Unai is doing more with the players at his disposal, than would ordinarily be expected.

Which to me, shows that he is an elite manager, and he is CAPABLE of getting better performance out of the players at his disposal. That's not true of all managers.

[eamonn]

Agreed.

There's also a snobbery about Unai that he's perfect for the second tier of clubs who aren't expected to challenge for titles.

[dave.woodhall]

Agreed.

There's also a snobbery about Unai that he's perfect for the second tier of clubs who aren't expected to challenge for titles.

And he doesn't speak English properly from people who can't speak two, let alone four.

[cdbearsfan]

Fuck those guys.

[stevo_st]

I read Nick Mashiter ‘over performance’ for 3.5 years assumption as being based on the xG theoretical nonsense.

AI journalism

[Simon Page]

We haven't over-performed. The ability was clearly there, it's just been realised or at most optimised. This is what we can do, we might be able to do more, we can sure as hell do less. You don't over-perform consistently for three and a half years at the top of far and away the hardest and most competitive league in the world. This is just the level we are right now.

It's only over-performing if you think name, cash, cheat codes and expectation are the main metrics. We have brilliant footballers, brilliant coaches and a brilliant set up which are all working well together.

[Vegas]

I think we have over-performed and it’s a compliment. With our resources and SCR handcuffs we shouldn’t really be expecting to finish in the top 4/5 regularly, and we have. That’s great, and a credit to the manager and whole set up. If Emery and the squad can come out of this transfer window, with the departures we’ve had, and finish top 4 again, that would be amazing and a continuation of his / our over-performance.

[pauliewalnuts]

The bottom line is that they don't understand how a club like us can have a manager like him.

They don't understand him, at all. The divs.

Yep.

If he failed at Arsenal how could he succeed at Villa?

With a side dish of ‘no matter what he does at Villa, the most important thing will always be that he failed at Arsenal’.

[andyh]

I think we can all agree that when the Premier League top 4 predictions of the BBC football commentators are issued, Villa will not be tipped by a single one of them.

[Olneythelonely]

Not sure I’ll tip us for that either, to be fair. Not that I’d be massively surprised if we achieved it again.

[Dogtanian]

It's going to be an interesting season, and the first one with a proper churn of the squad. This is one of the most difficult things to manage in football, and we'd be silly to not be prepared for some issues.

European qualification is massively important, for finances, for Emery's engagement, and for attracting and keeping players.

So I think if we can finish top six again, that would be fantastic, but any European qualification will be a successful season.

[Richard]

I think we can all agree that when the Premier League top 4 predictions of the BBC football commentators are issued, Villa will not be tipped by a single one of them.

Happy to go under the radar again. Will be tough though with the squad turnover and the CL distractions. We do have Unai on the other hand.

[PeterWithesShin]

We have over performed. While Gerrard was manager there were plenty on here saying the problem was the players and apart from Martinez none of them were top 10 players and no one could do better with them. Since then we've been the 4th best side in the country and done that while dealing with all the financial restrictions.

Two of my favourites were that criticising Gerrard was like reading the Daily Mail comments section and that SJM was nowhere near good enough and that no top side would ever want him and if he became a CL player they'd get their backside out on the Holte steps.

[frank black]

Wrong thread