LONDON, United Kingdom, Apr 23 – Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has extended his contract with the club until 2027.
Villa were 16th in the Premier League and fighting relegation when the Spaniard took over from Steven Gerrard in November 2022.
In a remarkable turnaround, Emery, 52, guided Villa to a seventh-place finish to qualify for the Europa Conference League, the club’s first participation in European football since 2010–11.
This season, they sit fourth in the Premier League with Champions League qualification in their sights. They are six points clear of Tottenham, who have two games in hand.
Renowned for his expertise in European competition, Emery has also steered Villa into a semi-final in the Conference League, where they will face Greek side Olympiakos with the hope of reaching a first European final since 1982.
Emery won the Europa League in three consecutive seasons with Sevilla before also lifting the trophy in 2021 with Villarreal.
He spent 18 months in charge of Arsenal, which was widely considered to be unsuccessful as the Gunners finished fifth in the Premier League and reached the 2019 Europa League final, where they lost to Chelsea.
The job he has done in turning around Villa’s fortunes has undoubtedly been remarkable.
He has accumulated 115 points in the Premier League since his appointment. Only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have managed more.
Emery has the best points-per-game record of any Villa manager in the Premier League era (1.95 per game), achieving 35 wins in 59 games (59%).
Villa take on Chelsea, Brighton, Liverpool and Crystal Palace in their final four league matches this season as they continue their bid to compete in Europe’s top competition for the first time since the 1982-83 season.
Workaholic Emery has transformed Villa – analysis
Unai Emery is in the perfect place to thrive at Aston Villa.
It has been clear for a while he is the right man at the right time for a club with burning ambitions to return to the elite.
Now, Emery is on the verge of taking the club to the next level as they edge closer to Champions League qualification and ending a 28-year trophy drought.
The Europa Conference League semi-final against Olympiakos next month stands between Villa and a major final as they look to win their first silverware since the 1996 League Cup.
A workaholic, Emery has transformed a struggling side to become one of the most consistent in the division, turning inconsistent players such as Leon Bailey into key performers while Ollie Watkins has taken on advice to play more centrally to become one of the most feared strikers in the Premier League.
It is no surprise to see Villa tie Emery down, with links to Bayern Munich having circulated and been dismissed, and it is now time for him to write their next chapter.
