Villa Manager
Aston Villa manager coverage — news, analysis, stories and history on every Villa boss. From the managers who built something to the ones who didn’t last the season, the decisions made in the dugout and the boardroom that shape Aston Villa on the pitch.
Unai Emery Pays Tribute to Pep Guardiola
Unai Emery Shows Big Respect to Pep GuardiolaAfter beginning to face Pep Guardiola's Barcelona when he was manager of Valencia in the 2008/09 season, Unai Emery had failed to beat Guardiola in their first 14 match-ups in Spain, and when he was the Arsenal manager. He had to wait until he was at Aston Villa to break his duck. Emery will be the last...
Emery Warns Against Complacency – Lille Are Dangerous on the Road
A Slender Lead, a Stuttering Home Record and a Side That Travels WellAston Villa hold a slender 1-0 advantage heading into Thursday's Europa League last-sixteen second leg at Villa Park, but Unai Emery has been unequivocal in his message to supporters and players alike: the tie is far from over.Ollie Watkins' header in Lille gave Villa a precious away goal and a first European...
Aston Villa Completely Change January Transfer Window Plans Due to Rising Stakes
January ContextIn the last Fan Consultation Group meeting with Aston Villa CEO Christian Purslow, on December 10th 2019, Villa's potential transfer activity in the...
Dean Smith Faces Up to His Most Difficult Situation Yet as Villa Boss, as Realty Bites
Reality BitesAfter picking up just four points from the last available 27, Aston Villa find themselves in the bottom three and precariously three points...
#77 The Concerns of Aston Villa’s Premier League Transformation Process
Aston Villa's Premier League rebuild is up and running in earnest. Through the past few months Villa's scouting team have been keeping tabs on...
Dean Smith Receives an Extra Play-off Advantage on Top of Villa’s Momentum
By Kris WoodwardAston Villa’s winning game streak came to an eventful end last weekend with a 1-1 draw against Leeds United. Whilst the ten...
Dean Smith’s Quick Thinking Saves Villa, as he Points Finger at Leeds Match Officials
That EqualiserHindsight, as they say, is a wonderful thing, but sometimes it has limitations. When Leeds United decided not to repay Aston Villa's earlier...
Unbeaten Under Steve Bruce, are Sheffield Wednesday Relevant in the Play-off Picture and Villa’s Destiny?
BBy Kris WoodwardThe Ex-boss ManDespite getting Aston Villa to within 90 minutes of the Premier League and generally giving fans the most exciting season...
Dean Smith Faces Upcoming Selection Complications After the International Break
Context of Defensive WoeFrom the very start of the season Aston Villa have been fire-fighting when it comes to their defensive situation. Of course,...
Aston Villa Play-off Talk Rightly Banned From B6 by Dean Smith
Last season Derby County needed 75 points to grab the final play-off spot. To put that into context for this season, Aston Villa would...
2019 Annus Horribilis for Dean Smith. Improvement Needed For Him to Reach its End
2019 FormBased on 2019 form and performances alone, it would be hard to take Dean Smith's future as Villa Head Coach seriously.With just 12...
Dean Smith Tells Aston Villa Players, the Wigan Loss is the Lowest Moment of his Career
Before Aston Villa came to the DW Stadium, Wigan were in trouble. One win in their previous 14 games and they had lost their...
Did Dean Smith’s Aston Villa Have Play-off Form in 2018?
Promotion HopeOnce Dean Smith's Villa had fired Aston Villa back into life this season after a dire start under Steve Bruce, it was hoped...
It Won’t Hurt if Dean Smith is Keeping Gary Monk Guessing
Mind Games
Back in the day, managers would make a habit of leaking fake injuries to the press, or putting uncertainty in the opposition manager's...