Aston Villa have named Unai Emery as their new head coach, replacing the sacked Steven Gerrard.
The club have paid Emery’s 6-million Euro release clause from Villareal, just 24 hours after Emery led the club to a 2-1 home win over Almeria on Sunday.
The Spanish club also confirmed the news with a communique in which they explained he had “decided unilaterally to rescind his connection to the club.”
Emery led Villarreal to the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League last season and he leaves with them seventh in the table with 18 points from 11 games.
The Spaniard replaces Gerrard, who was sacked after a 3-0 defeat to Fulham last week, and returns to the Premier League where he previously had mixed fortunes at Arsenal.
Emery led Arsenal to the UEFA Europa League final in 2019 and a fifth-place finish in the Premier League, but he was sacked after a poor run at the start of the following season.
Without Gerrard in the dugout, Villa won 4-0 at home to Brentford on Sunday.
Marcelino Garcia Toral is the current favorite to coach Villarreal – whom he coached between 2013-2016 – after leaving Athletic Bilbao last summer.
Villarreal manager Unai Emery has stated that Tuesday’s return leg of their Champions League semifinal against Liverpool will be a tough affair.
Unai Emery’s men have a difficult task over overturning a 2-0 first leg deficit against Liverpool, who are arguably the favorites to win the competition.
The Spanish side were under pressure for almost all of the first leg in Anfield last Wednesday, managing just one shot on target all game as Liverpool threatened to swap them with their high pressing and quick movement.
However, the 2-0 score means that Villarreal retain their options and the Estadio de la Ceramica will be packed on Tuesday.
It looks unlikely that Emery will be able to call on Spain international striker Gerard Moreno for more than a cameo at best in the game after Moreno took no part in his side’s 2-1 defeat to struggling Alaves on Saturday, where the coach rested just about everyone who is likely to start on Tuesday.
“We have to try and win, but we have to play a great game in defense as well,” said Emery in his pre-game press conference in which he explained Moreno had trained on Monday, but that Arnaut Danjuma had not.
“We will see how they are tomorrow in our last session,” he said, adding that that left-back Alberto Moreno and winger Yeremi Pino are out.
“We are excited. The team is prepared mentally to play our game and to have our chances against the best team in the world and to live this moment with our people,” said Emery.
Liverpool meanwhile won 1-0 away to Newcastle United on Saturday with coach Jurgen Klopp resting players such as Thiago Alcantara, Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander Arnold and Fabinho for the trip to the north of England.
Looking ahead to Tuesday evening’s UCL match between Bayern Munchen and his recently success in the match of the first leg, here’s a story on Unai Emery. Although the Villarreal CF coach is a well-known name in the world of football, here are five things you might not know about the Basque tactician.
His grandfather conceded the first ever LaLiga goal
LaLiga was launched way back in 1929, with the inaugural match being RCD Espanyol vs Real Unión Irún on February 10th. Remarkably, the Irún goalkeeper that day was a certain Antonio Emery, Unai’s grandfather. Unfortunately for Antonio, he went down in history as the man who conceded the first ever LaLiga goal to Pitus Prat as RCD Espanyol won 3-2. Unai’s father – and Antonio’s son – Juan Emery, also played as a goalkeeper for Real Unión Irún, amongst other clubs.
He once selected his starting line-up by rolling dice
After a modest playing career, Emery took to coaching and quickly guided UD Almería to Spain’s top division for the first time in their history. Their first game at LaLiga Santander level was against RC Deportivo and Emery, keen to show his squad how he trusted them no matter which XI started the match, rolled dice to determine his line-up. And it worked! The Andalusians won 3-0 on the day to make the perfect start to their top-flight history.
He is the coach with the most Europa League titles
Emery’s greatest achievements as a coach came with Sevilla FC when he won three consecutive Europa League titles in 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16. The honour of winning it three times in a row is his and his alone. He has since won the tournament a fourth time with Villarreal CF, making him the most successful manager in the history of the competition.
He has a song dedicated to him
When Sevilla FC reached one of those Europa League finals, some fans of the Andalusian club came up with their own version of a song performed by Nicky Jam and Enrique Iglesias, ‘El Perdón’. The coach even shared a video on Twitter of some Sevilla FC fans singing the new lyrics: “Without you, Emery, I couldn’t be happy; take me to Warsaw, take me to Tbilisi.”
He is a published author
In between coaching training sessions and analysing matches from the touchline, Emery found time to write a book about his managerial success. Published in 2012, it was written in collaboration with Juan Carlos Cubeiro and titled ‘Mentalidad Ganadora: El Método Emery’ – or, in English, ‘Winning Mentality: The Emery Methodology’.
Villarreal coach Unai Emery has clarified that he will not be leaving at the Spanish club to join Newcastle United.
Emery, who led Villarreal to last season’s Europa League title, had emerged as the favorite to be named as the new coach at the club which was recently the subject of a big money Saudi Arabian led takeover.
Following his side’s Champions League win over Yong Boys on Tuesday, he even commented that he had “not said no” to Newcastle, even though he explained that he had not received a formal offer from the English club. Whether or not he did speak to representatives of Newcastle now appears irrelevant after he published a letter affirming his loyalty to Villarreal, who he joined in July 2020.
“For all the noise there was yesterday in another country, within the club there has been transparency and loyalty with the Roig family (Villarreal’s owners), that for me is most important.” “Honestly, I am grateful for the interest shown by a great club, but am also even more grateful to stay here, and I have communicated to (Villarreal President) Fernando Roig my decision to want to continue as part of this project and for the commitment and respect that I have received from the club and my players, it is mutual and reciprocated.”
“I also want to show gratitude for the love and support that has always been shown to me. This Sunday, we have a very important game and I hope that, together, we can achieve victory. We will see you in the Estadio Ceramica,” wrote Emery.
Club president Roig had been asked about Emery’s future on Tuesday and showed his confidence the coach would remain at the club. “I’m sure that his mind is not drifting elsewhere. I know Unai has a contract with us and contracts are there to be fulfilled. We hope that we will be able to see that contract through until the end,” he commented. Meanwhile Newcastle will continue their search for a man to try and lead them out of the bottom three of the Premier League with former Bournemouth coach Eddie Howe emerging as a new candidate.
MADRID, April 28 (Xinhua) — Villarreal coach Unai Emery comes face to face with his recent past when the Spanish side take on Arsenal in the first leg of their Europa League semifinal on Thursday night.
Emery is perhaps the biggest specialist in the Europa League after winning the trophy three times with Sevilla in 2014, 2015 and 2016, and taking Arsenal to the 2019 final, where they lost to Chelsea.
After a series of bad results, Emery was sacked by the London club in November 2019, and was replaced by Mikel Arteta. Emery then took over at Villarreal last summer.
Villarreal have enjoyed a comfortable ride to the semifinals, beating Dynamo Kiev in the last 16 and Dinamo Zagreb in the quarterfinals, although their European progress has affected their domestic form, with a surprise defeat away to Alaves a fortnight ago followed by a 2-1 loss at home to FC Barcelona last Sunday.
Villareal pushed Barca until the final whistle with just 10 men after Manu Trigueros’ sending off for a wild tackle in the second half.
Emery will base his side on the effectiveness of striker Gerard Moreno and the pace of Samuel Chukwueze, while in midfield, Dani Parejo, Trigueros and Etienne Capoue provide a balance between creativity and positional awareness in front of Spain international Pau Torres and Raul Albiol.
Arsenal travel with their hopes of qualifying for Europe through the Premier League all but over after a disappointing domestic season, while revelations of the club’s involvement in the failed Super League project has further strained the already poor relations between owners and fans.
Speaking to the press, Arteta highlighted Emery’s experience, adding that Villarreal “are very clear about their ideas with the ball, without the ball and from set pieces. They have a very good connection between all of their players and compete in every moment of every game,” he said.
Arteta will be without key strikers Alexandre Lacazette and and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang which will rob his side of much-needed firepower, and much will depend on the displays of youngsters Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe, along with Nicolas Pepe.
MADRID, July 27 (Xinhua) — Unai Emery set himself the target of winning a major title with Villarreal when he was officially presented as the club’s coach for the next three seasons on Monday.
The man, who has spent four years with nearby Valencia and won European glory three times with Sevilla, returns to Spain after a difficult 18 months at Arsenal and two seasons with Paris Saint-Germain.
“I feel at home again back in Spain after four years away,” Emery told the press, adding that his new club has “always competed with the best and qualified for Europe.”
He takes over a club which finished fifth in La Liga last season to qualify for the Europa League. Emery hopes to repeat his European success on the eastern coast of Spain.
“It is a challenge to continue to give prestige to this club, and I hope I can enjoy myself along the way.”
“I do dream (of winning a title), and I dream of winning a title with Villarreal, but the great thing is what happens along the way and trying to enjoy it. It is the process of winning that makes people proud,” explained the 48-year-old.
Emery said he valued the “stability” which he had seen at Villarreal in recent years and also the club’s policy of giving opportunities to players from its youth system.
“They are the future and the present,” he commented.
MADRID, July 21 (Xinhua) — Former Arsenal, Paris Saint Germain, Sevilla and Valencia coach Unai Emery is the favorite to take over at Villarreal after the club confirmed on Monday that Javier Calleja would not be continuing at the helm.
Calleja leaves Villarreal, where he also spent time as a player, after guiding the team to a fifth place finish this season to qualify for the Europa League.
The club confirmed the news of Calleja’s departure on its website after 131 games in charge in which he achieved 57 wins, 30 draws and 44 defeats over a three-year-spell.
That spell actually saw him sacked early in the 2018-19 season, but then reinstated months later to lead Villarreal to safety in the final weeks of the campaign as they flirted with relegation.
Emery would be an experienced choice to take the club, bringing with him a wealth of European experience, winning the Europa League in three successive seasons with Sevilla and taking Arsenal to the 2019 final, which they lost to Chelsea.
He has also won Ligue 1 with PSG and consistently guided Valencia to top-four finishes in Spain during his four seasons at the club. Although he was sacked by Arsenal earlier this season Emery has consistently been successful in Spain.
Arsenal manager Unai Emery has demanded the club clear Mesut Ozil off the books before the new season begins.
Reports say Emery wants the board to get rid of Ozil this summer – even if they have to pay off his bumper contract to force his exit.
The Gunners boss is set for talks this week with the club’s board to discuss a rebuilding plan for his underachieving squad.
And top of the agenda is what to do about the increasingly toxic presence of Ozil at the Emirates.
The German’s perverse reaction to being hooked off with 12 minutes left of his side’s Europa League final hammering by Chelsea last Wednesday sparked outrage.
Despite being 4-1 down, Ozil refused to hurry off – and was later seen moaning to the rest of the bench about being subbed.
That latest strop spells the end of his Arsenal career as Emery will now order the board to dispense with his services – no matter what the cost.
But the fact Ozil, who turns 31 in October, is easily Arsenal’s highest-paid player – having agreed a £270,000–per-week, three-year contract extension prior to Emery’s arrival – is a massive problem.
Arsenal boss Unai Emery would be happy to sell Mesut Ozil this summer.
Reports in London however say the 30-year-old is under contract until 2021 and is happy to stay at the club despite not always featuring under the Spaniard during his first season in charge of the Gunners.
Ozil made 34 appearances in all competitions and fought his way back into Emery’s preferred starting line-up towards the end of the campaign.
But Emery has limited funds to rebuild the squad after Arsenal were soundly beaten by Chelsea in the Europa League Final to condemn them to another season without Champions League football.
Meanwhile, Ozil is thought to be disappointed at being substituted for teenager Joe Willock during the Final in Baku with Arsenal needing to chase the game.
Willock was lively in his 12-minute appearance but Ozil’s withdrawal was a damning assessment of his ability to change a game in Arsenal’s favour.
The manager is believed to have a budget of around £40m to spend on rebuilding his current squad.
Speaking a day after the Europa League final loss, he said they were disappointed with the outcome of the Europa finals where they lost to their London rivals Chelsea 4-1 in Baku.
“Not easy to find the words to describe how we feel today, but here is an important one: Proud of our team, our club, our fans, of the huge effort of all of us since day one. Proud to be part of the Arsenal family. Today we start building next season’s Arsenal. Forward together.”
Chelsea scored four times in a stellar second-half display to dispatch Arsenal 4-1 and lift the Europa League trophy at the Baku Olympic Stadium in Azerbaijan.
The win in the all-English final gave Italian manager Maurizio Sarri a major trophy in his first season in charge and Chelsea a first European title since when they won the Europa League in 2013
After goalless first half, former Arsenal striker Giroud put Chelsea ahead in the 49th minute with a well taken header. The Blues doubled their lead 10 minutes later when Pedro diverted a cross from Hazard beyond Petr Cech.
In the 65th minute, Ainsley Maitland-Niles concede a penalty after colliding with Giroud and Hazard stepped up to score the resultant spot kick.
Substitute Alex Iwobi clawed a goal back for Arsenal but Chelsea restored their three-goal cushion in the 72nd minute after Hazard and Giroud exchanged passes before the French forward scored his second of the night.
After the match, the Belgian star confirmed that he was likely to leave the club this summer, amid widespread speculation about a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid.
“I think it is a goodbye but in football, you never know,” said Hazard, who was given an ovation by Chelsea fans when he was substituted in the closing minutes.
“My dream was to play in the Premier League. I did this for seven years for one of the biggest clubs in the world. Maybe it’s time for a new challenge.”
By contrast, Arsenal have lost five of their six major European finals, with their only victory coming in the 1994 Cup Winners’ Cup against Parma.
Fresh from winning the first major title of his managerial career, Sarri said he was happy in his role, despite persistent speculation he is close to a return to Italy after a tumultuous season in London.
“You know very well that I love the Premier League, the level of the competition,” he told reporters. “I am lucky because I am in Chelsea, one of the best clubs in the Premier League, one of the best championships in the world,” he said.
Arsenal now face a third consecutive season outside the Champions League, which could hurt its ability to attract transfer targets in the summer.
“We need the same players, the same idea, maybe also to add some new players,” said coach Unai Emery, a three-time Europa League winner with Sevilla. “But it’s the same way we’ve done this year, to do one step more. I think next year a lot of players who played the first time this year with us can be better.”
For his part, Petr Cech – the veteran Arsenal goalkeeper who is expected this summer to return in an administrative role to Chelsea, the team he spent his best footballing years – said: “It’s disappointing to have lost the final and especially now.”
“It was the last game of my career and you want to finish on a high, but I had an amazing career,” he added, noting that ending the season empty-handed was unfair to Arsenal, which was improving fast.