Emery toasts ‘very good week’ for Villa
Unai Emery hailed a “fantastic” win that capped a “very good week” after Aston Villa came from behind to secure a 3-1 home win over Bournemouth in the Premier League.
Villa again boosted its bid for UEFA Champions League football seven days after winning 2-0 at Arsenal, and three on from the penalty shootout triumph at Lille that took it into the UEFA Europa Conference League semi-finals.
With four league games to go, the midlands outfit is now six points clear in fourth of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, which has two games in hand.
Emery said: “A very good week, very good, and today was fantastic.
“Of course, those three points were very important, and I think we can be proud of our work and proud of how we are being consistent and trying to fight with Tottenham.”
Villa can make the gap to Spurs nine points when it hosts Chelsea at the weekend, a day before Tottenham plays its next match, at home against arch rival Arsenal, and asked about that, Emery said: “Every match is very important.
“Here against Brentford [a 3-3 draw on 7 April AEST] we didn’t achieve three points and were disappointed. We used that match to analyse with the players, and I think the reaction of the players was fantastic at Arsenal, and was fantastic as well today.
“I think again the players are showing us their commitment to continue being demanding, to try to keep consistency at the end of the season.”
Emery was also asked about being linked with Bayern Munich, to which the Spaniard replied: “I am focused here, 100 per cent.”
Bournemouth stayed 13th, on 42 points with five games remaining.
The Cherries’ record Premier League points tally for a season is the 46 accrued when finishing ninth under now Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe in 2016-2017.
Boss Andoni Iraola said after the Villa game: “I think we have a clear goal right now and that is to beat the points record of Bournemouth.
“I think we can do it, but it’s not going to be easy because we have very difficult games. We play away again against Wolves, then we have Brighton, Arsenal away [also Brentford at home and Chelsea away] – games where if we want to get the points we want, we are going to have to have a very, very good performance. That is what we are looking for.
“Today we couldn’t do it, especially second half, and we need to improve if we want to get that.”