Unai Emery has chance to put final nail in Wolves’ coffin – but is it a ‘derby’ for Aston Villa?
Unai Emery has an opportunity to put the final nail in Wolves’ coffin when Aston Villa head to Molineux on Friday night.
For opponents Wolves, the 2025-26 season could not have gone any worse.
Having escaped the bottom three on multiple occasions under Julen Lopetegui and Vitor Pereira in the past, Rob Edwards has been unable to ignite the spark to drag Wolves away from trouble this time around.
Edwards’ side sit rock bottom of the Premier League, having amassed just 10 points from 28 matches.
Wolves have had the upper hand against Villa at Molineux in recent times, but now Unai Emery’s side have the chance to hammer one of the final nails in the coffin after a dismal term in the Black Country.
Aston Villa vs Wolves – derby or not?
Despite the proximity between the two West Midlands clubs, historically, there has never been too much animosity between Aston Villa and Wolves, with the debate arising twice a season as to whether the fixture is a ‘derby’ – though that has changed drastically over the last decade.
This stretches back to Villa’s Championship stint from 2016-19.
Wolves ran away with the 2017-18 title, while Villa fell to defeat in the play-off final against Fulham, but it would be that year that the fixture gained traction – Steve Bruce’s comments suggesting that Wolves’ European imports would struggle during the winter months only added more fuel to the fire.
Then following promotion, Wolves would fire themselves straight into the Europa League, and until the post pandemic years, had claimed the position as top dogs in the West Midlands.
Result after result at Molineux, and a dramatic 3-2 win at Villa Park, the relatively new rivalry was firing on all cylinders, but only for one side.
And strangely, even as the roles have reversed since the 2022-23 campaign, there is still a big Molineux hurdle that Villa have been unable to jump over.
With Wolves now all-but relegated from the top-flight, Villa have a big chance to signify the end of an era – further solidifying their dominance over their neighbours, while Wolves join the other Midlanders in the Championship.
An Aston Villa win against Wolves could signify the end of an era
Aside from West Brom’s 2020-21 top-flight venture, Villa and Wolves have found themselves as the West Midlands representatives in the Premier League – largely impacting the rivalry.
Having won just once at Molineux during the period from the respective promotions to now, an away win for Emery’s side would signify the end of an era as Villa well and truly become the region’s dominant force.
Sitting third in the standings, the Villans are on track for a Champions League place, while they are looking to get back to form after an inconsistent run.
Beating Wolves to strengthen their own Champions League ambitions, while further rubbing salt into the bottom dweller’s wounds, would be a huge moment.
And more poignantly, a moment that could signify the end of what has been a relatively short-lived rivalry.
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