Aston Villa made an outstanding decision to replace Steven Gerrard with Unai Emery back in 2022, with the numbers now showing just how integral the Spaniard has become at Villa Park.
What a week it’s been for Aston Villa, who confirmed their place in the Europa Conference League semi-final, beat Bournemouth 3-1 at Villa Park and announced that Unai Emery has signed a contract extension with the club.
Aside from an outstandingly good week, the Villans are on course to deliver one of the best seasons in their recent history, with a fourth-place finish looking to be on the cards in a bid to qualify for the Champions League next campaign.
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Despite all the highs that Villa have produced on the pitch this season, not much will top the club’s ability to tie down Emery, who has proven just how much of a perfect match he is to the Midlands side.
Figures show Aston Villa pulled off a masterclass in hiring Unai Emery
It was astoundingly good business for Villa to hire Emery back in October 2022, seeing the manager arrive when the team sat down in 17th in the Premier League.
In his first season, the Spaniard drove the side he inherited from Steven Gerrard to finish 7th, ensuring that European football returned to Birmingham in an emphatic turn of events.
It’s not rocket science to see just how much of an upgrade the four-time Europa League winner is on Gerrard however, the figures now show the levels between the two coaches.
As relayed by Aston Villa Statto on Twitter, there is a glaring gap between the win percentages of Emery and Gerrard, and Emery and any other Villa manager on that matter.
Emery has a win percentage of 59% at Villa Park, with the Englishman only managing a record of 32% when he was at the helm, reinforcing the stroke of mastery that the Villans pulled off by hiring the experienced coach.
Aston Villa’s decision to hire Unai Emery has changed the entire club’s trajectory
If Villa are to finish fourth this season, Emery will achieve the club’s highest Premier League finish since Martin O’Neill led his squad to finish 6th in the 2009/10 season.
Following O’Neill’s departure, Villa found themselves in a doomed cycle of mediocrity, with coaches coming and going after failing to make a real difference at Villa Park.
The hiring of Gerrard after Dean Smith’s tenure epitomised just that, with the likes of Steve Bruce, Tim Sherwood and Paul Lambert unable to break through before him.
In hiring Emery, everything is brighter, as shown by his win percentage, the most of any Aston Villa manager in history with a side he largely inherited from Gerrard in the 2022/23 campaign.
Breaking a cycle of mediocrity was essential for Villa to return to being one of the best sides in English football, with the hiring of Emery proving to be the catalyst for a change in standard at Villa Park.
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