Villa will fancy their chances of achieving their target and what an achievement it would be for Emery, who has transformed the mood and style of the club since succeeding sacked Steven Gerrard in October 2022.
Tactically astute and seemingly invested in every kick from his technical area, he is close to guiding his team into the previously unknown territory of the Champions League. This would be another superb achievement on an already impressive C.V.
After acting as a catalyst to spearhead the Midlands side into the Europa Conference League at the end of his truncated first season, many supporters would have been happy for Emery to simply take the next step into the Europa League.
Instead, he stands on the edge of taking them into Europe’s elite, the sixth club he will have taken into the Champions League. He also has the best win rate of any Villa manager in the Premier League and since his appointment they sit fourth on points gained behind Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool.
The appointment of Emery was a clear signal of the club’s ambition but even the most optimistic member of the hierarchy would not have envisaged a potential Champions League place so soon. The impact has been dramatic.
Villa are unquestionably running close to empty, as was seen in their Europa Conference League semi-final exit to Olympiakos, but sheer spirit and refusal to accept defeat saw them through to a point against a freewheeling Liverpool who created chances but always looked vulnerable at the back.
For all their frailties and fatigue, Villa kept coming at Liverpool to score those two late goals, even threatening to win it in nine minutes of added time – a result that would have ended all arguments about fourth place.
Their rise under Emery will also give hope to those fearing the top four will always be a closed shop, following on from Newcastle United’s example last season in gatecrashing the so-called established order.
Hanks may be the legendary global figure who sometimes sprinkles his stardust on Villa Park but even he might acknowledge Emery is the star of this show.
Now Villa will hope their resurgent Premier League season will get the perfect Hollywood finale with a place at Europe’s top table.
2024-05-13 22:45:05
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