Aston Villa will be eager to secure three points against Wolves on Saturday afternoon however, Unai Emery must first defeat a problem of his own when it comes to playing the Old Gold.
Following on from the international break, Aston Villa return for the start of the Premier League run-in on Saturday, welcoming their Midlands rivals Wolves to Villa Park.
After failing to win their previous two in the league prior to the break, Unai Emery will be desperate to see his side claim a critical three points at this stage in the season.
The race for the top four is heating up with nine games to go for the Villans, who sit three points ahead of Tottenham.
Spurs have a game in hand on Emery’s side, meaning that every point will be crucial from here until May, starting with the duel with Wolves on Saturday evening, a fixture the manager, in particular, will want to win.
Why Unai Emery needs to record a win against Wolves
As well as wanting to keep his side firmly in the race for top four, the Villa boss will be hunting a victory over Wolves for more reasons than one.
During his career in England, Emery has failed to win against the Old Gold during his six meetings, recording two losses and four draws.
Concerningly, the Spaniard averages just 0.67 points per game against the Midlands club, having trouble getting past them as manager of both Villa and Arsenal.
The purple patch against Wolves began in November 2018, when the Gunners drew 1-1 at the Emirates, with Emery not being able to solve his luck throughout his time in North London, losing 3-1 in April 2019 and drawing 1-1 in November 2019.
Unfortunately, the four-time Europa League winner is still without a win after making the move to Villa, recording a 1-1 draw and a 1-0 loss against Wolves last season as well as this term’s 1-1 draw at Molineux.
The time is now for Emery to break his damning curse against Villa’s rivals, with the stakes as high as ever as we approach the home straight of the Premier League season.
Unai Emery may find Wolves harder to beat than ever
This season, Gary O’Neil has installed a new-found level of confidence at Molineux, seeing the club sit comfortably in the top half of the table following last campaign’s woes.
For Emery, it may come as a nuisance to see the Old Gold in such impressive form, as they are equally as eager for three points with their own European push to play for.
Fortunately, the Spaniard may find some luck on Saturday due to the visitor’s ongoing battle with injury in their squad, which could hand the Villans a narrow advantage on this occasion.
