Aston Villa's 2-1 win over Wycombe Wanderers in the third round of the Carabao Cup has marked an incredible achievement for Villa manager Unai Emery. The four-time Europa League-winning boss has broken a club record, as he is the fastest manager in Villa history to reach 50 wins across all competitions.
It has taken the Spaniard just 90 matches to achieve this feat since his appointment back in October 2022, beating the record of 93 games held by Joe Mercer from 1958-1964. The table below represents previous Villa managers to have won at least 50 games and the number of attempts it took to achieve that feat.
Manager | Time period | Games |
|---|---|---|
Unai Emery | 2022-present | 90 |
Joe Mercer | 1958-1964 | 93 |
John Gregory | 1998-2002 | 101 |
Tony Barton | 1982-1984 | 103 |
George Ramsay | 1884-1926 | 103 |
Jimmy Hogan | 1936-1939 | 104 |
Martin O'Neill | 2006-2010 | 119 |
In the 21st century, Aston Villa have not seen too many managers emulate such success. Martin O'Neill led a successful period between 2006 and 2010 when the club finished sixth in the Premier League three years running, as well as reaching the last 32 of the UEFA Cup.
Others like Tim Sherwood (36%), Paul Lambert (30%), Alex McLeish (21%), Dean Smith (40%) and Steven Gerrard (33%), to name a few, came nowhere near to the current win rate of Unai Emery (56%).
To celebrate our brilliant manager, let's have a look back at Unai Emery's top 5 wins as Aston Villa boss.
5. BSC Young Boys 0-3 Aston Villa
Although the opposition was not particularly strong, the victory represented a monumental moment in Aston Villa and Unai Emery's career. Having qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in four decades, Villa would have been eager to kick off their campaign with a result. The result that came was an emphatic one. Thanks to goals from Youri Tielemans, Jacob Ramsey and Amadou Onana Villa laid down a marker and sent a message to the rest of Europe: The Villa are not here just to make up the numbers.
4. Aston Villa 3-1 Manchester United
Emery's first game as Head Coach of Aston Villa couldn't have been much tougher. Manchester United visited Villa having not lost to the claret and blue side in the Premier League at Villa Park since 1995. However, thanks to goals from Leon Bailey, Lucas Digne and Jacob Ramsey Villa tore United apart to claim a 3-1 win. This was a sign of things to come for Villa after suffering so badly under the poor management of the previous boss Steven Gerrard. This was the start of Emery ball.
3. Arsenal 0-2 Aston Villa
Whilst sitting fourth in the league table but struggling in terms of squad depth due to multiple injury problems, Villa visited an Arsenal side that hadn't lost a single league match in 2024. Arsenal were flying and the expectation from most pundits and fans was that Arsenal would comfortably take the points against a Villa side that were on their knees heading into the final stretch of the season. However, despite some early dominance from the Gunners, Emery proved his tactical expertise by putting together a masterclass of a performance to take the win late on in London. Defending resolutely and posing a real threat on the counter-attack, late goals from Leon Bailey and Ollie Watkins gave Villa the three points. With that win, Emery completed the league double over his former side following their 1-0 win at Villa Park earlier in the season.
2. Aston Villa 3-0 Newcastle
The performance at home to an excellent Newcastle side that qualified for the UEFA Champions League in the 2022/23 season, was nothing short of perfection. Villa made one of the best teams in the league, at the time, look like a non-league side with their dominance in defence and attack. Jacob Ramsey smashed the ball home on the half-volley to give Villa a 1-0 lead at half-time before an Ollie Watkins double in the second half sealed the points. At the time, it was the most complete performance I had ever seen from an Aston Villa side in my twenty years as a fan.
1. Aston Villa 1-0 Manchester City
That, however, was topped by an extraordinary performance at home to the champions. Unai Emery well and truly outclassed City boss Pep Guardiola and thanks to Leon Bailey's late goal Villa deservedly claimed all three points. Villa limited City to just two shots during the entirety of the ninety minutes and played the six-time Premier League champions off the park. A magical night that Villa fans could not have imagined being able to witness prior to Unai Emery's arrival at the club.
He took over a Villa side struggling in 17th. Since then...
— Betano UK (@Betano_UK) September 25, 2024
🟣 Fourth-most EPL points total since he took charge.
🔵 Elite European qualification for the first time in 41 years.
🟣 Fastest manager to reach 50 wins in Villa's history.
Unai Emery is a special manager. 👏#AVFC pic.twitter.com/XQwGHxgeb6
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