Unai Emery, Aston Villa's manager, spoke out after leading his team to a victory over Liverpool in the latest English Premier League match.
Unai Emery, manager of the "Villans" Aston Villa, said he is extremely proud of his players after their 4-2 home win over the "Reds" Liverpool. The victory moved them up to 4th place in the table and guaranteed a spot in next season's UEFA Champions League. He declared that from now on, the focus will be fully on the Europa League final.
Emery said, "It was excellent. This match was very important for us because the main goal is the Premier League. We faced Liverpool and tested ourselves. The first half was tough, but the second half was really great. I sincerely thank the fans. We have secured our place in the Champions League."
Regarding competing in both the Premier League and Europa League: "Competing in both tournaments and maintaining consistent form is not easy. We have had an excellent Premier League season. I am very proud."
"We try to focus on both competitions and we take preparations for each game seriously, knowing how difficult it is. We started the Premier League season poorly, and in the second half, we lost several home matches, but we got through that. Before the game, I was worried about the level we needed to play at, but I am very happy with our result."
On the Europa League final: "Now our focus is on the final. We must be 100% committed in our preparations. Playing in the final will be very challenging, but we will enjoy it."
Aston Villa will face Freiburg in the Europa League final on Wednesday, 20 May 2024 GMT+7.