The only direction Aston Villa have gone since Unai Emery joined last October is up. Credit: Reuters/Jason Cairnduff
Given how obsessively meticulous he is at his job, it has always been a mistake for Newcastle United to tell the story that they wanted Unai Emery as their new manager to come out just hours before how he was supposed to take charge of the Champions League match.
In November 2021, Villarreal's Emery team faced Young Boys in a crucial group game and it was obvious he was uptight and flustered when asked about the offer from Newcastle's new owners, led by Amanda Stavely, to take over from Steve Bruce .
For their part, Newcastle are adamant that they didn't leak the news, but unfortunately in their pursuit, sources have confirmed this and even suggested that Emery could be on Tyneside within 48 hours of the final whistle in Spain to take his first practice, which had to be rescheduled for noon to accommodate his arrival.
Emery didn't like that at all. He was also concerned about how the initial approach to it was done.
This meant that the 51-year-old was no longer sure, despite Newcastle sources claiming everything had been agreed verbally and his demands were met, and after a 2-0 win, he was questioned by the Spanish TV channel Movistar+ about his future and looked extremely awkward.
It was dirty, and dirty is not what Emery does. Villarreal president Fernando Roig was aware of this and seized the moment in a series of conversations, including in Emery's car on his way home from the stadium, to convince him to stay even though Newcastle were ready to activate the buyout clause. in the amount of 6 million euros in his contract. .
It was an unfortunate setback for Staveley and company that seemed to point to the naivety of the new regime, who was forced to turn to their second choice: Eddie Howe.
“ I'm here because Unai turned down this job, and I'm glad he did. Fate has a strange way of working and now we're together,» Howe said on Friday.
After all, Emery joined Aston Villa replacing Steven Gerrard in October 2022 and will face Howe at sideline at lunchtime on Saturday.
Like Howe, Emery is not only a workaholic — 12-hour days at Bodymoor Heath training facility is the norm — but he is very detailed and «correct» in the way he does things.
Coup at the Villa was extraordinary: Emery had the biggest positive impact on the club by moving it from 17th to 7th, since when? Since Howe was appointed by Newcastle, they have effectively gone from relegation candidates to Champions League qualifiers.
Aston Villa under Unai Emery
Obviously, this has worked well for clubs and coaches alike. Emery is just as happy at Villa, where he was given far more say and control than he had at Spain or Arsenal, just as Howe is happy at Newcastle, who will feel that the fact that their first and the second options were successful, showed that they had completed their task. proper due diligence and recruitment process.
“I always believe that your life is on the path it should be on, and I had to come here and that’s what happened,” Howe said. He shares so many traits with Emery, from a fierce work ethic to a serious, intense character who pays great attention to detail.
Neither wants to leave anything to chance, and both plan every workout carefully. They are also focused pragmatists. “I am very happy and proud of my decision to come here,” Emery said, and that demanding nature and Villa’s determination to invest in him also likely means the changes made to the training ground, including the addition of an extension. so that the players can stay overnight.
I wonder how far Newcastle and Villa can go. The wealth of the Saudi Arabian-backed Newcastle owners is well known, but Villa is heavily invested in by their co-owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens, who have a very close relationship with Emery and treat him like an old-fashioned manager. not as a head coach of continental Europe.
Aston Villa are sixth in the Premier League ahead of Saturday's match against Newcastle. Getty Images/Will Palmer
There is also a sense that Howe at Newcastle and Emery at Villa could be a perfect match. These are clubs with ambition and support, but they are just below the established Big Six, and the temperament of coaches may be more suited to trying to break into it, rather than compete within it and face this pressure.
As with Howe when he left Bournemouth, keeping and building the club but relegated from the Premier League on your resume. Emery has another powerful motivator: he has something to prove. The nasty mockery of his English at Arsenal — the «good evening [evening]» taunts — hurts. His limited command of the language served as a weapon.
Emery always wanted to return to the Premier League to show his true worth. It could have been at Newcastle and while they certainly don't regret it given the excellent work done by Howe, it's Villa who feel the benefit.
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