Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has enjoyed an abundance of success since taking charge of the club, with the Spaniard currently ranked as the best manager in the Premier League according to new data.
Hiring Unai Emery was one of the best pieces of business that Aston Villa have done in recent years, as the Spaniard carried the squad he inherited from Steven Gerrard from 15th to 7th place in his first season.
The 52-year-old rocketed his squad to a spot in the UEFA Europa Conference League, Villa’s first involvement in Europe since 2010, and continues to show his worth in the Midlands.
Putting Wednesday night’s FA Cup exit aside, the former Arsenal boss is exceeding expectations at the helm in the 2023/24 calendar, as his side sit in 4th in the table and have progressed into the Round of 16 in the Conference League.
Last week, former Villan Lee Hendrie praised the manager for “making the club believe again” with his work, however, it’s not only those associated with Villa that recognise the Spaniard’s progression.
The stats that suggest Unai Emery is the best manager in the Premier League
As shared on Twitter by The AVFC Faithful, statistics provided by Twenty First Group highlighted Emery as the highest-ranked manager in the Premier League this season based on performance.
As shown, Emery averages an impressive 2.0 points per game in the Premier League with Villa, a record that is only topped by Jurgen Klopp (2.2), Mikel Arteta (2.1), and Pep Guardiola (2.2).
The reason that the four-time Europa League winner tops the chart is based on the difference between his expected points tally at the start of the season, compared to the expected points tally now.
Displaying a points difference of 13.5, the numbers portray the levels that Emery is hitting at Villa this campaign, showing an extreme contrast to the form that the club were in at the point of his arrival in October 2022.
What else the numbers show for Aston Villa and Unai Emery
As well as signposting the former Villarreal coach as being the best-performing manager in the league, the chart reveals a potentially interesting narrative.
Sitting in fourth place by just two points, the figures produced by Twenty First Group predict Villa to finish with 68.4 points, revealing an extremely slight difference between themselves and Tottenham Hotspur.
Ange Postecoglou’s side are expected to finish on 68.2 points according to the data, which could decide the difference between the club that is granted a spot in the Champions League, and who must settle for the Europa League in the 2024/25 calendar.
Football can change in the blink of an eye however, the numbers show signs of what could be a huge step in Villa’s progression under Emery.
