Aston Villa are criminally underrated

[footywithuti]

Evening everyone, I hope you’re doing well. I’ve just done a short 3-minute video on why Aston Villa are the most underrated club in the entire division for those interested. As an outsider looking in, I’ve been amazed at Villa’s performances ever since Unai Emery’s come in and am glad to see you getting back to where a club of your stature belongs. If this man is backed in the summer and allowed to build a team in his own image, I wouldn’t be surprised to see you add another European trophy to your cabinet in a year from now. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts and wish you all the best for Brentford away on Saturday, cheers!

https://youtu.be/UqPjZXlR3Oc

[German James]

I can't argue with any of that. Thanks and UTV!

[Axl Rose]

Good stuff.

Why is Emery much maligned, though? People speak as if he relegated Arsenal, but they finished 5th? 6th? He's won countless UEFA Cups etc

[AV82EC]

He follows Wenger who although slightly tarnished by the end made Arsenal the club they are today. It’s a bit like following Ferguson, as soon as the slightest chink in a new Managers armour appears the fans and the media are onto them mercilessly.

[Mister E]

https://www.theguardian.com/football/who-scored-blog/2023/apr/20/ollie-watkins-aston-villa-unai-emery-goals-premier-league-table
Supports the theme.

[eamonn]

Cool, send the link to the Tifo lads.

[martyn ellis]

This is probably the best thread to post this link. More praise for the Villa and from a Man Utd fan no less. Believe it or not he talks a lot of sense:

[Hookeysmith]

Excellent clip and i am honestly amazed by the genuine comments from this guy

There is no way he is a United fan as i have never met one, and i mean never, that can talk about football without you hating them within 5 minutes

Fair play

[paul_e]

I watched that yesterday and have to agree, it's a pretty fair summary that is more insightful than most.

[Smirker]

Good stuff.

Why is Emery much maligned, though? People speak as if he relegated Arsenal, but they finished 5th? 6th? He's won countless UEFA Cups etc

I honestly think most of it was because of his 'Good Ebening' thing and because Arsenal fans are a bunch of dicks, especially online, they basically turned it into a meme and that was it.

Their loss.

[paul_e]

I think part of it was because Arsenal fans had convinced themselves that Wenger had lost it and any decent manager would get them back in the Champions League when the truth was that sorting the squad out and getting rid of the handful of toxic players was always going to take 3-4 windows. A lot of the players that are at the heart of their team now were signed or promoted whilst Emery was there but a run of a few poor performances was enough for them to panic and sack him.

The thing I find most annoying though isn't Arsenal, it's the lack of credit he gets for having the highest win percentage ever as PSG manager, if you look at the other people who've had that job it's a truly remarkable achievement for a manager who, until recently, was dismissed by so many.

As soon as his name was in the mix I voted for him (on the pool on here) as the manager I wanted because it just felt like the perfect fit and it's turned out far better than I expected so far.

[Risso]

After two defeats in his first two games (to Chelsea and Man City, hardly a disgrace) for the Arse, he then won 11 in a row in all competitions. They finished the season really strongly too, with 9 wins out of 13, but got humped a bit by Chelsea in the Europa final, but even then, Chelsea had a really strong team with Hazard, Jorginho, Kante and Giroud all pretty much at the height of their powers.

[eamonn]

What were his weaknesses at Arsenal? Some fans said they let lots of narrow games slip at home to poorer sides but I don't know how he was found wanting when it came to tactics and changes.

[Risso]

What were his weaknesses at Arsenal? Some fans said they let lots of narrow games slip at home to poorer sides but I don't know how he was found wanting when it came to tactics and changes.

My mate's an Arsenal season ticket holder of many years, and he said it was a combination of things, eg:

Following Wenger - a difficult job like following Ferguson at Man U.
Didn't take control from the off -  a bit too nice, English really not very good, openly mocked and a few problems in the dressing room, eg Ozil.
Not on the same page as the owners/recruitment team, eg wanting Zaha but getting Pepe.

None of which he has at Villa, plus we've got him with a few years more experience.

[LeonW]

What were his weaknesses at Arsenal? Some fans said they let lots of narrow games slip at home to poorer sides but I don't know how he was found wanting when it came to tactics and changes.

My mate's an Arsenal season ticket holder of many years, and he said it was a combination of things, eg:

Following Wenger - a difficult job like following Ferguson at Man U.
Didn't take control from the off -  a bit too nice, English really not very good, openly mocked and a few problems in the dressing room, eg Ozil.
Not on the same page as the owners/recruitment team, eg wanting Zaha but getting Pepe.

None of which he has at Villa, plus we've got him with a few years more experience.

Didn’t he also want Ozil out very early but the arse board said no. Then Arteta came along and said the same thing and this time they said yes?