Emery's Second Act: Aston Villa's Transformation

The Holte End told the story before a ball was kicked.

A vast tifo dropped from Aston Villa’s famous stand, the message roaring across Villa Park: “We’ve Conquered Before. We’re Prepared For More.” Below it, Unai Emery walked along the touchline to a standing ovation, four years on from the day he swapped Villarreal yellow for claret and blue and quietly changed the direction of a grand old club.

On nights like this, it feels less like a rebuild and more like a sequel.

Emery’s second act

Saturday’s visit of Premier League leaders Manchester City will mark the fourth anniversary of Emery’s appointment. It will arrive with Villa back in the Champions League, Europa League winners, and with a manager whose name is now carved into the stadium’s history alongside the greats.

The 3-1 win over Viking was another chapter in a story that has gathered momentum at frightening speed. Villa Park crackled. The mood was buoyant, expectant, more in keeping with last season’s Europa League triumph than the anxiety that circled the place only weeks ago.

No wonder there were nerves in the summer. Six of the XI who dismantled Freiburg 3-0 in Istanbul to win that Europa League final are gone. Emiliano Martinez, Lucas Digne, Youri Tielemans, Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa, Morgan Rogers – pillars of Villa’s resurgence – all moved on, Konsa and Rogers to Arsenal and Chelsea for a combined £172m as part of an extraordinary £320m sales haul.

The upheaval showed. Emery’s side opened the campaign by being thrashed 4-0 at Brighton, all four goals conceded before half-time. They lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal. A goalless draw at Hull City, then a 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest at Villa Park, left the early narrative writing itself.

Slow starters again. This time without their stars.

Then came Spurs away. Villa won. The old certainty returned. Since then, Fenerbahce swept aside 6-0 at home, a hard, grown-up 1-0 victory at Newcastle United, and now Viking beaten amid another wave of noise in B6.

The European numbers are becoming Emery-esque. Twelve straight home wins on the continent. Three wins from three in this season’s Champions League. For a few minutes they even topped the overall standings, until Peter Christiansen’s late goal for Viking left Villa level on nine points with Paris St-Germain, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Real Betis.

Emery’s reaction at full-time told you what it meant. He looked elated, energised, already leaning into what comes next.

“Those three points fills us with confidence,” he said. “We are comfortable, and of course as well getting balance, because after this match we are going to play against Barcelona, favourites, and then we play against Galatasaray away.

“We now try to focus now on the Manchester City game on Saturday, hopefully the same atmosphere, the same energy. I am so, so happy but we must keep moving forward with the challenges we are going to face.

“There’s still a lot of work to do, so how we are responding, getting better, is really fantastic.”

City arrive with a 100% record from seven league games. Villa arrive with a manager who relishes exactly this kind of storm.

Villa 2.0 takes shape

If Emery looked even more animated than usual against Viking, it was because this was his new creation taking a bow.

Villa have spent £280m to reshape the squad. This is not a patch-up job. It is a full-scale renovation overseen by a coach with a back catalogue that commands trust: three successive Europa League titles with Sevilla, another with Villarreal, a European trophy now with Villa, and even at Arsenal a run to the Europa League final in 2019.

Nassef Sawiris and the Villa hierarchy have backed their man. Emery has responded by fast-tracking a new core.

On the right flank, 20-year-old Brazilian Alysson was the standout performer against Viking. Signed from Gremio in January in a deal that could reach £10.4m, he tormented the Norwegians with raw pace and direct running. The end product still needs polish, but defenders already hate facing him.

He won the penalty Emiliano Buendia converted to make it 2-0, then finished a surging run with a low cross that Henrik Heggheim could only divert into his own net for Villa’s third. Every time Alysson received the ball, Villa Park leaned forward.

On the opposite wing, 18-year-old Ibrahim Mbaye offered flashes of why Villa spent £47m to prise him from Paris Saint-Germain. Already a World Cup history-maker after becoming the youngest African player to score at a men’s tournament during Senegal’s run at the 2026 World Cup, he now looks set to form a terrifying wide partnership with Alysson for years to come.

Behind them, the change in goal could have unsettled everything. Martinez was not just a goalkeeper but a cult figure. Zion Suzuki, the 24-year-old Japan international signed from Parma for £30m, has stepped into the role with a calm that borders on cold-blooded. He is assured under pressure and his passing – short and long – has added a new layer to Villa’s build-up.

Joao Gomes, a £38m arrival from Wolverhampton Wanderers, showed against Viking why Emery wanted him in the engine room. Tenacious, tidy, and brave on the ball, he looks like the sort of midfielder who will quietly glue this new side together.

Up front, Emery turned to a familiar face. With Watkins leaving for Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League, he moved for Nicolas Jackson, a player he had already moulded at Villarreal, signing him from Chelsea for £65m. Five goals already suggest the reunion is working.

Then there is Johan Manzambi, perhaps the most exciting of the lot. The 21-year-old Swiss midfielder, signed from Freiburg for just over £50m, exploded onto the world stage at the 2026 World Cup. Villa beat Newcastle United to his signature, a blow that reportedly left Eddie Howe devastated. Manzambi has already scored on his full debut in the win at Spurs and then delivered the winner at St James’ Park. He is a doubt for City, which tells you how quickly he has become central to the conversation.

This is not a clean break with the past, though. It is evolution, not erasure.

Old hearts, new blood

John McGinn remains the heartbeat of Emery’s side, the captain who drags team-mates with him when Villa Park demands a response. Around him, familiar faces have been given new life.

None more so than Ross Barkley.

At 32, the former England midfielder is enjoying a late-career renaissance few saw coming. A surprise signing from Luton Town in July 2024, having previously spent the 2020-21 season on loan at Villa, Barkley has forced his way into Emery’s plans with a run of form that feels like a reclamation project.

He scored against Viking, his fourth of the season, having already netted twice in the demolition of Fenerbahce. Emery has made no secret of his admiration.

“As a person, he is a fantastic guy. Ross Barkley is a very good player with experience, and his career, I don’t know why, was going down after Chelsea,” Emery said.

“When we watched him at Luton, we thought, ‘wow, what a player’. I am so happy with how he is playing, always being respectful whether he is playing or not. I am pushing him a lot offensively. I know he can score and can head the ball. I am very demanding of him offensively. I am happy for him.”

That last line could apply to most of this squad. Emery drives them hard, but no harder than he drives himself. The standards are relentless. The rewards are becoming obvious.

The early doubts about how Villa would cope without so many high-profile departures have been swept aside long before Manchester City roll into town.

Now the question feels different. With Villa Park roaring, Emery in his element and Villa 2.0 already showing its teeth, just how far can this version go?