What Unai Said – Aston Villa 3 Nottingham Forest 1 and Looking Ahead to Palace
“Together, control, momentum.”
The Scoreline
Aston Villa’s 3–1 win over Nottingham Forest was not framed by Unai Emery as a reaction to Arsenal,. Instead, he treated it as something more important in the long run. A return to control, togetherness, and momentum.
“So good, three points,” Emery said, immediately grounding the night in its most basic truth. Villa needed the win, they prepared properly, and the players responded to the demands placed on them. That language matters. Emery did not talk about freedom or expression first. He talked about rest, work, and response.
What followed was a familiar but telling theme. Control without recklessness.
Villa dominated possession and positioning, but Emery repeatedly returned to what did not happen rather than what did.
“The key was that we didn’t concede a clear transition.”
That sentence explains much of the evening. Forest were respected, not dismissed. While Sean Dyche’s organisation is respected in the game, with his team’s focus on regaining structure and keeping their defensive discipline, Villa were ultimately patient and systematic in how they controlled the game and suffocated the visitors.
The first goal changed the tone, as Emery admitted. It always does. But the match did not unfold as a procession. After the second goal, Villa relaxed. Forest scored. Structure had to be reasserted. Emery did not hide that moment. He highlighted it as part of the process.
“We needed again to recover our structure strong and respect them.”
That respect is not rhetorical. It is practical. It is how Villa avoid games becoming chaotic and fire fights, particularly at home where emotion can easily override discipline.
John McGinn’s goals were framed in the same pragmatic way. Not as inspiration, but as obligation.
“We need goals from the players, the strikers, the midfielders, everybody.”
Emery sets individual targets. He expects them to be met. McGinn scoring is not a bonus, it is part of the design. That clarity runs through the squad and removes ambiguity about roles.
Eleven consecutive home wins were acknowledged, but not celebrated in isolation. Each match, Emery stressed, is a new challenge. The streak is a by-product, not a goal.
What matters is connection.
The Villa Park Crowd Issue
He spoke at length about energy, feedback, and atmosphere, returning again and again to the idea of togetherness. Villa perform at Villa Park because players and supporters are aligned.
“This is the key. This is how we are performing here, because we are together.”
Despite Emery’s words, the crowd can no doubt do better to help the team. After the game, Ollie Watkins rightly questioned the atmosphere. Gentrification and rising ticket prices don’t help, as you get an aging and more passive tourist demographic of fan – this has an impact that few seem to ever acknowledge in such discourse.
Also, active fanbases are rapidly fading from English football culture, as they are increasingly led by consumerism – merch drops and fit checks, are increasingly their main concerns. Previously, excuses have been, “well, it’s up to the players to give us something to cheer for”. At the moment, they are, but the Villa Park baseline atmosphere could be a lot better.
At some point, to keep the team’s momentum going the crowd will need to up their game to emotionally charge the players.
Remember, that rather limp offering on and off the pitch in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley, last season? Compare that to the atmosphere of the semi-final against Liverpool a decade before, when the Villa crowd lifted a decidedly average Villa team to another level for the win.
Emery certainly deserves such a crowd.
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The Crystal Palace Voodoo
Villa’s next opponents, the opponents on that woeful day at Wembley last season, have proven to be Emery’s kryptonite.
Crystal Palace is a team that certainly has the Villa boss’s respect.
“It’s the team that’s always performing very well against us,” he reflects.
“Last year, they got the trophies, and their structure is really strong. Their tactical shape is fantastic – how they are performing, how they are feeling confident and comfortable to play against every team.
“Against us, they have performed fantastic, and they beat us. It’s a challenge. We are in good form but we know the difficulties.”
Emery will not doubt be looking to take advantage of Palace’s depleted ranks due to both injury and the African Cup of Nations. Yet, he remains wary.
“Their structure tactically is strong, and they have good players, good positioning – it’s different. We must adapt to them and compete, firstly, thinking about how we can stop them and how we can dominate and to adapt our structure and shape, imposing.
“Individually, the duels tomorrow will be very, very important.”
The Emery Index
Overall Score: 8 / 10
Villa controlled the match through possession, positioning and territorial dominance. Minor lapses followed the second goal, but overall execution closely matched Emery’s demands.
Immediate recovery after the structure briefly loosened in the second half and Forest scored, no panic, no loss of belief. Emery repeatedly emphasised patience, respect, and continued commitment to the game plan.
A strong bounce-back from Arsenal, continued home dominance, goals from midfield, and reinforcement of Villa Park as a genuine platform for performance.
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