The uncomfortable truth for Unai Emery about Villa’s first-half display is that many of the worst performers were signed on his watch.
With one eye on Thursday’s Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest, where Villa must overturn a 1-0 deficit, Emery made seven changes. Five of those he included have joined Villa when he was manager.
Tammy Abraham, Ross Barkley, Jadon Sancho and Ian Maatsen struggled desperately and Victor Lindelof was not much better.
Villa complain that Premier League and UEFA spending rules are weighted against them – and they probably have a case. But the restrictions make it even more important to avoid transfer blunders and under Emery, there have been far too many.
One way or another, Villa will surely qualify for European football next season, which would be four in a row for Emery. He is among the best coaches in Europe yet recruitment is a different story.
Roberto Olabe was brought in to replace Monchi as transfer chief last autumn and he has to get it right this summer.
Unai Emery’s decision to make seven changes against Tottenham was heavily punished
Tammy Abraham (right) and Ross Barkley (left) were among those who struggled in the 2-1 loss
An expensive gamble
There were 565million reasons why Villa should have given everything to beat Tottenham here.
Like it or not, revenue is the most important number for any Premier League club these days. The wealthy six outstrip everyone else in this department, meaning they can pay higher transfer fees and offer bigger salaries.
Even with Champions League football last season, Villa’s revenue was nearly £200m short of Spurs in 2024-25 – £378m compared with £565m.
Had Villa won here, Spurs’ would have been in the bottom three with three matches left. If they drop into the Championship it would remove one of the clubs Villa cannot compete with financially.
Trophies mean everything to supporters – and so they should. If Villa knock out Forest on Thursday and then beat Braga or Freiburg in the Europa League Final, this nonsense of a performance will be forgotten.
Yet next time Villa executives are complaining about PSR, SCR and whichever other acronyms you care to mention, they would do well to remember the decisions Emery made last night.
The poor display was worrying ahead of Villa’s Europa League clash against Nottingham Forest
Gallagher regrets
In fact, Villa need only look at the scorer of the opening goal to understand their error. Conor Gallagher has twice turned down Villa, most recently last January.
Emery thought he had a deal to sign the midfielder from Atletico Madrid on loan with an obligation to buy in the summer.
Then Tottenham moved to sign him permanently for £35m and Villa were left helpless. There’s that £200m gap in revenue again, folks.
Still, goal or no goal, win or no win, Gallagher must have had the odd moment of reflection since making his choice. Even if his goal helps keep Spurs up, there is still a good chance Villa will play Champions League football next season.
Had Gallagher come to Villa Park, Emery would have made him a key player and that could have lifted the 26-year-old into England’s World Cup squad. Instead he likely faces a summer on the beach – he hopes as a Premier League player.
Conor Gallagher, who has twice turned down Villa, scored the opener for Tottenham on Sunday
Final roll of the dice
It is a sure bet that from Tuesday, Forest boss Vitor Pereira will tell his players to disregard this dreadful Villa display.
Key men like Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa, Pau Torres, Lucas Digne and – hamstring permitting – captain John McGinn will return and the atmosphere will be completely different. Villa will surely play substantially better than they did here. If they do not, it will be another trophyless season for Emery.
Yet a result like this makes everybody much more nervous. Though there was always pressure on the Forest game, it feels much greater now. Villa fans rightly love Emery but they were not happy tonight. Securing a European Final is the easiest way to win them back.
