Unai Emery walked into the post-match press conference looking hardly like a man whose side had enjoyed their best league start in 26 years.
“We played very seriously and maturely,” the Aston Villa boss said with one eye on Tuesday evening.
Once a match ends, Emery sits down in front of Villa’s coach, pulls out his laptop and starts focusing on the next opponents.
If you win the Champions League against Bologna on Tuesday, Villa will most likely qualify for the knockout phase of the new Champions League format.
Before the tournament, UEFA simulations predicted that an average of 7.6 points (two wins and two draws) from eight matches would be enough for qualification. Villa already has six points, with six games left to play.
Unai Emery remains calm despite Aston Villa’s stunning start to the new season
Villa got off to their best league start in 26 years on Saturday by beating Fulham 3-1
Villa emerging star Morgan Rogers (left) opened the scoring in the Craven Cottage league match
Since defeat to Arsenal in August, Emery’s men have gone unbeaten in nine games in all competitions and the fundamentals of their performance on the Thames were a reminder that they have the squad and a manager who is aware of what is needed to compete in the competition at the same time. Europe and in the Premier League.
You only have to look at Newcastle from last season to see how Champions League qualification could affect you domestically. Apart from the opening weekend, Eddie Howe’s side were not in the top four for the rest of the season, eventually finishing seventh.
For Newcastle it always felt like a fleeting joy and they ultimately finished bottom of a group with AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund and PSG.
With a manager like Emery – who has four Europa League titles to his name – there is a genuine feeling at Villa that they are not just there to make up the numbers. It is perhaps also telling that Emery has asked for the spotlight at Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training. complex so that they can also train in the evening.
In an even game at Craven Cottage, the key moments arrived and Villa won them. Emiliano Martinez, described by Emery as ‘the best goalkeeper in the world’, saved Andreas Pereira’s penalty before Ollie Watkins got the crucial goal.
There was no need for Jhon Duran heroics off the bench, but it spoke volumes about the depth to the squad that Emery could bring against the likes of Duran, Jadon Philogene, Ross Barkley, John McGinn and Emi Buendia.
Either side of victory over Bayern Munich, Villa dropped four points to draws at Ipswich and at home to Man Utd, but there was a sense of a team maturing here. Once again they came from behind, but resilience is second nature to them under Emery.
Since defeat to Arsenal in August, Emery’s men (right) have remained unbeaten in nine games in all competitions
England striker Ollie Watkins (right) has been crucial to Villa’s sensational rise under Emery
Sunday marked two years since Steven Gerrard was sacked by Villa after a 3-0 defeat at Craven Cottage left them just outside the relegation zone. Only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have achieved more points since then.
The Spaniard’s contract runs until 2029 and you get the feeling that there is so much more to come.
“It’s only going to get better for us. You can see the direction the club is going with good signings and Champions League football, so it’s an exciting time to be a Villa player and also a Villa fan,” said Watkins.
The ceiling is only getting higher for Aston Villa.