Unai Emery urging Aston Villa to fight on as they prepare for key top-five clash

It is not one the manager will have had much difficulty getting through. Almost from the moment the team walked off the pitch having been beaten by Crystal Palace in last Saturday’s FA semi-final, the focus switched to what can still be achieved from a campaign which only a few short weeks ago was being fought on three fronts.

John McGinn and Leon Bailey, along with Emery himself very quickly turned attention to the battle for a top-five Premier League finish, their sole remaining target.

Beating Fulham on Saturday lunchtime would both help banish any post-Wembley blues ensure they remain firmly in the race.

It would also leave them mathematically close to sealing European qualification for the third straight year. For a club promoted up from the Championship only six years ago and which sat just above the relegation zone when Emery arrived in November 2022, that is not the kind of achievement which should be taken lightly.

Neither should there be any doubt Villa are still very much part of the battle for Champions League football.

Last week’s late defeat at Manchester City might have damaged their hopes and left them with a smaller margin for error than any other team in contention. 

But it did not end their chances. One of the main lessons from Villa’s various end-of-season battles of recent years, whether it be for promotion, against relegation or for Europe under Emery, is that other teams will drop points. 

With trips to Bournemouth and Manchester United either side of a home match with Tottenham to follow after Saturday, Emery’s men will be favoured to win every remaining fixture. A haul of 69 points, should they achieve that, has been enough to finish in the top-five in 16 of the last 20 Premier League seasons.

While it appears unlikely Marcus Rashford will play for Villa again this season due to the hamstring injury which forced him to miss the Cup semi-final, Emery is otherwise expected to have a fully fit squad to choose from.

These next few weeks will also deliver a final verdict on the strength in depth of a group which has once more come under scrutiny after the lethargic outing under the Wembley arch. 

A core theme of Emery’s recent press briefings has been the manager’s desire for his team to finish the season strong. Now is the chance to do just that and there will be few excuses. Not since last August will Villa have had so much time to rest and prepare between matches.

Emery said: “We need to try to get again our full energy playing the last four matches in the Premier League to try and get our objective again to play in Europe.”