Premier League: Emery appointed as Aston Villa manager

-

Is this a good appointment for Aston Villa?

They have appointed Unai Emery as manager following the sacking of Steven Gerrard.

Emery had joined Villarreal in 2020 and led them to Europa League success in the 2020-21 season, beating Manchester United in the final. The Spanish club also reached last year's Champions League semi-finals under Emery, losing 5-2 to Liverpool on aggregate.

Unai Emery

Emery in his Arsenal days. Credit - Rckr88 | Flickr

Emery's Villarreal appointment followed his sacking after just 18 months as Arsenal manager in November 2019. He was dismissed after failing to win in seven games.

During his time in North London he took Arsenal to the Europa League final, losing to Chelsea in 2019.

Villa beat Brentford 4-0 on Sunday under caretaker Danks - just their third win in 12 Premier League games this season - which left them 14th, three points above the relegation zone.

All the best reaction

This is the statement that Villa released on their website.

What is everyone else saying?

A Villa fan said: "A very astute, experienced top-class manager. With patience, he will do a great job at Villa. We are a sleeping giant, a proper football club with a great history. It just takes the right manager and the right time."

Another added: "Just checked Unai Emery's win percentages as a manager. Worst was his time with Spartak Moscow with 46.2%.

The last time Villa had a manager with a better win percentage than that was in the 1930s with Billy Smith. Welcome to Aston Villa Umai."

One Arsenal fan told us: "As an Arsenal fan, I wish him all the best. He was never given the backing he needed. When he was sacked, he showed his real class with his goodbye message to the fans. All the best Unai."

Popular posts from this blog

Sliding Doors Moments: What if Scholes wasn’t offside?

-
Image
It's time to for another sliding doors moment in football  We travel back to 2004. Manchester United face Porto in the last-16 of the Champions League.  Author - Liam C What actually happened? A ontroversial offside call against Paul Scholes became a pivotal moment in European football history. The disallowed goal cost United a place in the quarter-finals, while Porto, managed by the up and coming manager José Mourinho, went on to win the competition and launch Mourinho into the managerial elite. But what if Scholes hadn’t been ruled offside? How might this alternative scenario have changed the landscape of world and European football? Scholes wasn’t offside: United progress Had the linesman not flagged Scholes for offside, Manchester United would have progressed to the next round of the Champions League. Scholes' goal was legitimate, and had it stood, United would have won the tie on aggregate, knocking out Porto and ending their European dreams. With the Red Devils moving
Read more

PL News: Ten Hag sacked by Man United

-
Image
There has been a managerial change at Old Trafford. Manchester United have sacked manager Erik ten Hag due to the club's disappointing start to the season. Author - Olivia T Ten Hag's last match ended in a 2-1 defeat against West Ham , leaving the club in 14th place in the Premier League with only three wins from their first nine matches. The Red Devils are also 21st of 36 teams in the Europa League league stage, having drawn their three opening matches. Club sources from the club have reportedly suggested that this was a difficult decision but a unanimous one among all the key decision makers.  The club exercised a one-year extension in Ten Hag's contract after their FA Cup final win against Manchester City in May . However, just over three months later, he has been dismissed. United currently sit on 11 points after nine games, marking their second-lowest tally in the Premier League at this stage (only slightly better than the 10 points they had in the 2019-20 season)
Read more

Scotland: Kilmarnock stun Rangers with late winner

-
Image
Kilmarnock 1 - 0 Rangers Rangers remain six points behind the Premiership leaders after suffering a late defeat against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Author - Mark Lee In a lacklustre match, Rangers wasted several opportunities to secure three points. A combination of poor finishing and solid defending from Kilmarnock made it another frustrating afternoon for the Belgian manager. As the game was heading for a draw, David Watson's lob found Marley Watkins, who beat the offside trap and bundled the ball past Jack Butland. The Gers need to regroup quickly ahead of their Europa League match against FCSB on Thursday. Meanwhile, Derek McInnes' team has now moved to seventh place and are just outside the top six on goal difference. A closer look at how Kilmarnock stunned this Rangers side Home form has traditionally been a strength for Kilmarnock , but they had recorded five draws and one defeat in all competitions on their own pitch leading up to this game. ⚽️ Goal of the day: Mar
Read more