Threadbare Villa in crisis as Emery faces Arsenal after Brighton collapse
N
NewsDesk
Original post · 25 Aug
If you're an Aston Villa fan, the opening weekend was about as grim as it gets. A squad that won its way to a Europa League final in May has been picked apart over the summer, and the cracks showed badly in a chaotic defeat at Brighton - with champions Arsenal now waiting at Villa Park on Monday Night Football.
A first half to forget
Villa managed something almost no one else has. They became just the second team in Premier League history to concede four goals, receive a red card and score an own goal all in the first half - the only other side being Southampton against Manchester United in 2020/21.
Brighton racked up 3.54 expected goals from open play, the highest Unai Emery has faced since taking charge in October 2022. Three of Brighton's 21 shots came from Villa errors, and two of those became goals. That's the kind of afternoon that leaves a manager with plenty to think about.
The summer that gutted the squad
The bigger story is what's been stripped away. Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne, Morgan Rogers and Ezri Konsa have all left, and Villa's squad retention of 65.6 per cent is the lowest in the Premier League - just ahead of Tottenham's 67.1 per cent. The difference is Spurs were rebuilding after back-to-back 17th-placed finishes; Villa are being dismantled from a position of success.
Ollie Watkins didn't travel to Brighton at all, with Al Hilal interested. Asked why, Emery replied: "Ask him. I can only answer it by silence." That's not the language of a manager expecting his striker to stick around.
Emiliano Martinez was also absent and is chasing an exit after a Juventus move collapsed. His replacement Zion Suzuki sat on the bench and watched. Villa have spent the least of any club in the league on replacing who they've lost.
No striker, no midfield, no cover at the back
Up front, Villa went with Emi Buendia as a false nine and it went about as you'd expect - two touches in the opposition box before the red card, five in total. Teenager Brian Madjo, who scored five in seven in pre-season, is injured, and Tammy Abraham was sidelined too. Sky Sports News reports Villa are expected to move for Nicolas Jackson - reuniting him with his old Villarreal boss Emery - if Watkins departs.
Midfield is thin as well. New signing Joao Gomes, who'd won over fans in pre-season, was caught on the ball for Brighton's third and then sent off for violent conduct. He now serves a three-game suspension, leaving Emery leaning on Ross Barkley, John McGinn, Lamare Bogarde or Victor Lindelof. A deal for free agent Leon Goretzka is being finalised. Record signing Johan Manzambi won't be fit for Arsenal, and Amadou Onana is out with an ACL injury.
Then there's the defence. Konsa's £55m move to Arsenal looks the most damaging exit of all - Villa's back line looked lost without him, with errors from Pau Torres and Lindelof failing to track runners. A bid for Southampton's Taylor Harwood-Bellis has been rejected and contact made for Club Brugge's Joel Ordanez, but neither is walking through the door before Monday.
What it means heading into Arsenal
There's some context for optimism. Villa didn't score a league goal until September 21 last season and still finished in the Champions League places. Emery has dug his way out of slow starts before.
But this feels tougher. Facing the champions without a recognised striker, with a suspended midfielder and a reshuffled defence, the numbers won't be kind. If the same self-inflicted mistakes creep in at Villa Park, Arsenal are more than capable of doing what Brighton did. For anyone eyeing the markets, that's the backdrop - a threadbare Villa still very much in the middle of rebuilding.
Sources:
Worth keeping an eye on how this lands - there's an ongoing discussion of UK online casinos on the forum.
A first half to forget
Villa managed something almost no one else has. They became just the second team in Premier League history to concede four goals, receive a red card and score an own goal all in the first half - the only other side being Southampton against Manchester United in 2020/21.
Brighton racked up 3.54 expected goals from open play, the highest Unai Emery has faced since taking charge in October 2022. Three of Brighton's 21 shots came from Villa errors, and two of those became goals. That's the kind of afternoon that leaves a manager with plenty to think about.
The summer that gutted the squad
The bigger story is what's been stripped away. Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne, Morgan Rogers and Ezri Konsa have all left, and Villa's squad retention of 65.6 per cent is the lowest in the Premier League - just ahead of Tottenham's 67.1 per cent. The difference is Spurs were rebuilding after back-to-back 17th-placed finishes; Villa are being dismantled from a position of success.
Ollie Watkins didn't travel to Brighton at all, with Al Hilal interested. Asked why, Emery replied: "Ask him. I can only answer it by silence." That's not the language of a manager expecting his striker to stick around.
Emiliano Martinez was also absent and is chasing an exit after a Juventus move collapsed. His replacement Zion Suzuki sat on the bench and watched. Villa have spent the least of any club in the league on replacing who they've lost.
No striker, no midfield, no cover at the back
Up front, Villa went with Emi Buendia as a false nine and it went about as you'd expect - two touches in the opposition box before the red card, five in total. Teenager Brian Madjo, who scored five in seven in pre-season, is injured, and Tammy Abraham was sidelined too. Sky Sports News reports Villa are expected to move for Nicolas Jackson - reuniting him with his old Villarreal boss Emery - if Watkins departs.
Midfield is thin as well. New signing Joao Gomes, who'd won over fans in pre-season, was caught on the ball for Brighton's third and then sent off for violent conduct. He now serves a three-game suspension, leaving Emery leaning on Ross Barkley, John McGinn, Lamare Bogarde or Victor Lindelof. A deal for free agent Leon Goretzka is being finalised. Record signing Johan Manzambi won't be fit for Arsenal, and Amadou Onana is out with an ACL injury.
Then there's the defence. Konsa's £55m move to Arsenal looks the most damaging exit of all - Villa's back line looked lost without him, with errors from Pau Torres and Lindelof failing to track runners. A bid for Southampton's Taylor Harwood-Bellis has been rejected and contact made for Club Brugge's Joel Ordanez, but neither is walking through the door before Monday.
What it means heading into Arsenal
There's some context for optimism. Villa didn't score a league goal until September 21 last season and still finished in the Champions League places. Emery has dug his way out of slow starts before.
But this feels tougher. Facing the champions without a recognised striker, with a suspended midfielder and a reshuffled defence, the numbers won't be kind. If the same self-inflicted mistakes creep in at Villa Park, Arsenal are more than capable of doing what Brighton did. For anyone eyeing the markets, that's the backdrop - a threadbare Villa still very much in the middle of rebuilding.
Sources:
Worth keeping an eye on how this lands - there's an ongoing discussion of UK online casinos on the forum.
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