Aston Villa: Micah Richards Manager of the Year claim on Unai Emery should become reality regardless of European success
Micah Richards’ claim that Unai Emery could scoop up the Premier League Manager of the Year award this season could become reality if Aston Villa manage to secure European football.
The Villans continued their staggering Premier League form on Saturday (8 April) as they conquered Nottingham Forest 2-0 to make it six wins from their last seven outings and add further fuel to their push for European football.
The victory at Villa Park saw Emery’s side catapult above Brighton into sixth in the Premier League with eight games of their season remaining, albeit with Liverpool and the Seagulls possessing games in hand upon the West Midlands outfit.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, Richards waxed lyrical about Emery and admitted that the Spaniard could be a realistic contender for the Manager of the Year title if Villa end up securing European football for next season.
“Aston Villa for Europe? It’s not out of the question,” he said.
“I am staggered by the work Unai Emery has done and he has given supporters reasons to dream. Expectations are only going to grow but let them — if you can’t dream in football, what is the point?
“Emery could even be an outsider for Manager of the Year if he got Villa into Europe but Liverpool’s second-half performance makes me think they will just miss out. If Liverpool get nine games of that kind of quality, they will be in the top six, without a shadow of a doubt.”
Securing European football remains a long shot for Villa, with tough upcoming fixtures against Brighton, Liverpool, Manchester United and Newcastle on the horizon, but if the club do manage to sneak in, Emery deserves every bit of credit under the sun.
When the former Arsenal boss arrived at Villa Park, the first team were devoid of confidence, struggling to score goals and only sitting out of the relegation zone on goal difference.
Considering the prior struggles under Steven Gerrard, Emery’s record since taking the reins is made to look even more remarkable.
Only ten managers in Premier League history have earned more points from their first 17 fixtures in charge than Emery has at Villa Park, while his team are still yet to draw a blank in front of goal during this period of time. [Aston Villa Statto]
The four-match winning streak – over Bournemouth, Chelsea, Leicester City and Nottingham Forest – is also the first time Aston Villa have recorded such a run since October 2020.
But the most impressive turnaround has been the form of Ollie Watkins and the sheer number of goals Emery’s Villa side have been netting.
From Gerrard’s 11 games at the helm, a meagre six goals were scored, compared to the miraculous 30 goals netted from his successor’s 17 matched in charge. [WhoScored]
The turnaround of Aston Villa has been stark and evident in almost every department, and Emery should certainly be up for Manager of the Year regardless of whether the club manage to make the top six this season.
In other Aston Villa news, Unai Emery might have a new star on the block after an injury expert shared news on a first-team ace.