Aston Villa

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Unai Emery will always play down Aston Villa's chances but he will be faced with title race questions soon enough.

Villa will be three points behind leaders Arsenal if they beat Brighton on Wednesday and the Gunners lose at home to Brentford.

They welcome Mikel Arteta's pacesetters to Villa Park on Saturday and, while Emery will want to ignore them, the questions about their involvement in the title race will come, even if they seem fanciful.

They are entirely fair though, given Villa are a third of the way through the season, have won seven of their past eight Premier League matches and sit fourth.

Defender Ezri Konsa dismissed any talk after Sunday's 1-0 win over Wolves, saying: "I won't speak about the title. I don't think we are [dark horses]."

It signifies the focus within the squad and the caution used given the chasing pack.

Wednesday's hosts Brighton are two points behind in fifth and just five points separate third to 11th in the table.

Villa are fourth without seriously finding top gear - Opta's expected table have them second bottom - so if they do finally hit their straps, Emery, who faces the media on Tuesday afternoon, will not be able to avoid the questions he loves to deflect.

Come back to this page later on Tuesday for all the key lines from Emery

Aston Villa have scored nine goals from outside the box so far this season, which is more than any other Premier League side.

That means over half of their total goals have been longer range efforts, but is it sustainable?

"It is," said former Premier League winger Andros Townsend on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club. "Youri Tielemans has got one hell of a shot on him, so if sides keep letting him shoot then at least one will go in.

"If they are not scoring from outside of the box because you are closing them down then they can still score with the quality players that they have in between the lines."

Watch the full episode on BBC iPlayer and listen on BBC Sounds

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Aston Villa and Wolves.

Here are some of your comments:

Villa fans

Hazton: As a local derby it was never going to be an easy win, despite Wolves being rock bottom. To get a hard fought win was a good result in the end. We are playing well and clawing out results. That's what matters.

Malcolm: Three points is three points but, overall, it was a poor performance. One has to admit Wolves deserved something from the game.

Dave: If we'd have had the option to keep Rashford on the left, we'd be pushing for the top slot. Aston Villa... quietly does it!! Emery is remarkable. We have a cracking squad!

Robin: A good win with a great goal. Other than that, the overall performance was poor. Rogers at his worst. Some poor passing and losing possession. Must be more clinical to maintain league position.

Julian: Wolves are our bogey team. Ugly game, ugly win. Move on.

Wolves fans

Mike: Totally unjustified scoreline - Martinez was much the busier keeper. I can see signs of progress already in the two games under Edwards, but we need to start getting some results from the two home games this week. As long as the team shows the fight and determination seen in this game, the crowd will get behind them. I just wish Fosun would sell the club to someone with a bit of interest.

Col: Edwards has us harder to beat. Credit to him for that. Unfortunately, there's just no quality in this team. Derby's low points record is going this season.

David: This was a decent team performance with expert goalkeeping by Martinez and bad luck both in front of goal. There was also a missed foul on Joao Gomes for Villa's goal, so we may even have been denied a surprise victory. Given it is Edwards' second game in charge, and against high-flying opponents, it is hard to criticise, but there will still need to be a very steep curve of improving confidence at least if the miracle is to happen.

Rhys: I want to say we played really well and we put up a good fight, but we just didn't. Same old story - boring first half, better team in the second - but still end up conceding. But, I remain confident Wolves will have a miracle and we definitely will make the great escape.

Pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards join host Kelly Cates to bring you the action and talking points from Sunday's Premier League fixtures.

There's a London derby as Chelsea take on Arsenal, Manchester United travel to Crystal Palace, and struggling Wolves make the short journey to Aston Villa. Elsewhere, West Ham entertain Liverpool and Nottingham Forest face Brighton.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Aston Villa 1-0 Wolves

• Nottingham Forest 0-2 Brighton

• West Ham 0-2 Liverpool

• Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

It was not a classic performance from Unai Emery's Aston Villa.

They struggled to create serious openings and again relied on the spectacular to get them over the line.

They have scored 56% of their Premier League goals [nine out of 16] from outside the box this season, an eye-catching stat which could cause problems.

It is one which could ultimately undermine them in the long run if and when the goals dry up.

It was another blank from Ollie Watkins, after he was dropped and came off the bench, and while Donyell Malen has eight in his last 14 for club and country Villa do not have a reliable goalscorer.

Yet they are fourth in the Premier League, belying the stats which have them second bottom of Opta's 'expected' table.

Emery remains Villa's biggest weapon, his ability to eek out every last drop from his side was evident again on Sunday and Villa fans will not care where the goals come from. They are riding high and only the result matters.

Unai Emery spoke to BBC Match of the Day after Aston Villa's victory against Wolves: "We had to follow the gameplan and be resilient. We didn't dominate the match and in some moments we were struggling to create or dominate. We respect them a lot and know how difficult it is to get points.

"We were better at being resilient, consistent and demanding was better in the second half."

Working on shooting outside the box?: "They practice a lot in training and then you must show it in the matches. The goal was fantastic. They were defending low but we were pushing and doing more passes before shooting.

"They had two or three chances but Emi Martinez made good saves. We did a great job."

On strong home form: "We feel comfortable and strong here. The fans transmit positive energy and want us to be together - it helps us to connect with the supporters. It's like our fortress."

Goalscorer Boubacar Kamara added: "They played very well. We know before the game it'll be tough. They're fighting at he bottom and need points. In the first half, they were better than us but we kept calm. We are happy but now we need to rest and go again on Wednesday.

On his goal: "It's very fast so good control, I try to shoot and after I see the ball was good. I'm happy with the goal.

"If you're strong at home, you're happy to play at home. The atmosphere was really good. They push us."

Listen to Emery's chat with BBC radio WM on BBC Sounds

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Aston Villa's performance

What did you make of Wolves' display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Ollie Watkins is dropped from Aston Villa's Premier League starting XI as Unai Emery keeps faith with Donyell Malen.

Former Borussia Dortmund forward Malen scored twice in the 2-1 Europa League win over Young Boys on Thursday, while Watkins has netted just once this season.

It is the only change from last weekend's 2-1 win at Leeds, although Amadou Onana returns to the bench.

Aston Villa XI: Martinez, Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne, McGinn, Tielemans, Kamara, Rogers, Buendia, Malen.

Subs: Bizot, Lindelof, Maatsen, Bogarde, Barclay, Sancho, Guessand, Onana, Watkins

Wolves boss Rob Edwards makes three changes as they look for their first Premier League win of the season.

Yerson Mosquera, Jhon Arias and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde come in at Villa Park.

Marshall Munetsi and Tolu Arokodare drop to the bench while Ladislav Krejci misses out with an injury.

Wolves XI: Johnstone, Tchatchoua, Agbadou, Mosquera, Toti, Wolfe, Joao Gomes, Andre, Bellegarde, Strand Larsen, Arias.

Subs: Sa, Hugo Bueno, Santi Bueno, Munetsi, Hoever, Hwang, Arokodare, Mane, Chirewa

Listen to BBC West Midlands commentary of Aston Villa v Wolves at 14:05 on Sunday on BBC Sounds

There are five games in the Premier League on Sunday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Crystal Palace v Manchester United (12:00)

• Aston Villa v Wolves - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Nottingham Forest v Brighton - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• West Ham v Liverpool - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Chelsea v Arsenal (16:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 14:05 GMT unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction from the first four games here

And go here for Chelsea v Arsenal

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Aston Villa v Wolves" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Chelsea v Arsenal", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

Rob Edwards did not get the start he wanted with Wolves last week and things will not be any easier here.

I am not expecting any surprises, and everything points towards an Aston Villa win.

Villa's only real issue at the moment is that Ollie Watkins cannot find his form - I have been there myself as a striker, when you can just become a bit hesitant rather than instinctive, but it will only take a goal or two to get him going again.

As for Wolves, well they are in desperate trouble. I remember one season with Blackburn [1996-97] when we had four points from our first 11 Premier League games.

We ended up staying up but, with respect, we had some good players and were also super aggressive with the way that we played to pick up results. I am not so sure Wolves have that about them.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Listen to BBC West Midlands commentary of Aston Villa v Wolves at 14:05 on Sunday on BBC Sounds

Noel Sliney
BBC Sport senior journalist

Five games into the season, Aston Villa and Wolves were the only two teams in the Premier League without a win and were both marooned in the relegation zone. Seven matches later, the West Midlands rivals are separated by 19 points. BBC Sport explores some of the talking points ahead of Sunday's meeting (14:05 GMT).

Home, sweet home for Villa

Villa have soared from 18th place to fourth prior to the weekend fixtures thanks to a run of six wins in seven games. They recorded a seventh straight home victory in all competitions by beating Young Boys in Thursday's Europa League encounter, and their only defeat in 30 games at Villa Park came in August against a Crystal Palace side who are kryptonite to Unai Emery's men.

No team in Europe's major leagues has as few home defeats over the past 30 matches, while only three have more wins.

Malen providing greater goal threat than Watkins

Donyell Malen further pressed his case for a first Premier League start in six weeks by scoring both of Villa's goals on Thursday to put them third in the Europa League table. It took his club tally for the season to six, all scored at Villa Park. Conversely, out-of-sorts fellow forward Ollie Watkins has just a solitary goal and assist in his past 20 appearances.

While Watkins has badly underperformed his expected goals tally of 4.3 this season, Malen has scored two goals more than expected based on the quality of chances he has had.

Can Edwards galvanise toothless Wolves?

New Wolves head coach Rob Edwards returns to Villa Park, where he started his playing career, with his side in danger of suffering six Premier League defeats in a row in the same season for the first time since 2012.

They are winless in 16 league games dating back to May and this season's tally of two points is the third worst record after 12 matches in English top-flight history. Manchester United were pointless at the same stage in 1930-31, while Sheffield United had one point in 2020-21.

A home defeat against Crystal Palace in Edwards' first game in charge last weekend left Wolves nine points from safety. Edwards opted for a back five and large-and-larger strike partnership of Jorgen Strand Larsen and Tolu Arokodare, but the head coach said afterwards the team's shape for each game would probably depend on who they are playing.

No player has scored more than once for Wolves in the league this season, an issue encapsulated by Jhon Arias contriving to miss from a few yards out against Palace. Top of Edwards' priorities must surely be to find a solution to the team's attacking deficiencies.

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Wolves at Villa Park (kick-off 14:05 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Emery confirmed that defender Tyrone Mings remains unavailable and will be out for "more or less, one month more". However, other players are "recovering" from Thursday's win and there are "hopefully no problems" for Sunday.

• He said they are feeling Villa Park "is our fortress with our supporters" after a run of good home form: "They are transmitting us the energy, their support, and they are transmitting as well good feelings to get together this form. And then as well, it's how the players are responding at home with our supporters, trying to get their best."

• He added: "Our poor start, we forget it completely, because now we are feeling like we were planning at the beginning of the season. We try to compete, to compete against the better teams, not to be contenders to be in top seven, but competing like we are doing now. We can feel comfortable, we can feel strong, and then we can feel demanding to keep it."

• Emery said he wants to be "adding more minutes" for some players while still "performing in the same structure" to help their progress, adding: "This is the standard we are trying to set. We are high in our demands, and every player is understanding, adapting and getting fit as well. After some players were injured, their comeback is very good."

• The Villa boss is "not feeling favourites" for this match against bottom-of-the-table Wolves: "With the new coach, they're going to be motivated and excited. They now have the necessity to get good in competitive way. They are going to try to do [this] on Sunday, - and the coach knows us and he's going to use this to try to get the points."

• More on facing new Wolves boss Rob Edwards: "My respect is massive. First, because our experiences against Wolves in the Premier League was always very difficult. Even winning last year was difficult, [and] two years ago, and they always perform very well here. We can feel how difficult it's been playing against every team, and with Wolves being in the moment they are, they will need to compete and to try to start getting more points."

Listen to BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra commentary of Aston Villa v Wolves at 14:05 on Sunday on BBC Sounds

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on Aston Villa's victory over Young Boys in the Europa League on Thursday.

Here are some of your comments:

Tony: Very impressive until the substitutions, then it all looked a bit clunky, but the wins keep coming. Really not seeing what Guessand or Sancho are bringing, other than a lack of creativity or quality.

Dave: A really comfortable, commanding performance and we could and should have been 4-0 up when we made our changes and it was those changes that seemed to disrupt our flow. But, despite still having the stereotypical Villa way of turning comfortable games into nervy endings, we're joint top in the Europa League, have started to be able to rotate a little more comfortably and look forward to 'welcoming' Wolves on Sunday. This could be a very exciting festive period for us.

Ryan: We keep on winning even when we don't play that well - the sign of a good team. Would be nice to not have to sweat, but if we can start to build the form together we'll be able to beat anyone. Really positive with the depth we're now building up.

Ian: It was a good win for Villa but we still struggled against a team when we should have won better than just the 2-1 - should have been at least 5-1.

Craig: Villa needed to be more clinical and ruthless with such a dominant first half. A trait that Emery needs to be very wary of, as teams better than Young Boys will definitely take unjust advantage of.

Phil: Big difference between first XI and second string. We give the ball away too much for a team trying to win trophies.

Prit: Most importantly, Villa won and take three points. Malen scored two well-taken goals, but it has to be said this match should have been a lot more comfortable and we left a lot of goals out there. We need a clinical striker who will take their chances. Unai needs to use his magic and find someone because we simply do not score enough goals. If we are broke, we could do worse than bringing back Louie Barry from his loan and giving him a chance.

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke are in the hunt to sign Louie Barry on loan next month with Aston Villa planning to recall him from Sheffield United.

The midfielder has not played for the Blades since October and Villa will bring him back and immediately send him back out on loan in January.

Promotion-chasing Stoke, second in the Championship, are among a host of interested clubs which include Derby, Hull and Oxford.

Barry spent the second half of last season on loan at Hull - after a successful 16-goal loan spell in League One with Stockport - but it was cut short by a knee injury and he made just four appearances.

The 22-year-old has been struggling with a cyst in his right knee and has returned to Bodymoor for treatment.

He is expected back at Bramall Lane next month and is due to be available for the Blades' final games of the year but it remains unlikely he will play.

He started the season well under Ruben Selles but United lost their opening five games before Selles was sacked and replaced by the returning Chris Wilder.

Barry made nine appearances for the Blades but has started just once under Wilder, in a 1-0 win over Watford in October, while his knee issue forced him to miss Sunday's derby win at Sheffield Wednesday.

Gary Rose
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

After their early-season struggles, Aston Villa are now riding high in both in Europe and the Premier League, with victory over Leeds at the weekend putting them fourth in the table.

They have now won 10 of their last 12 games and their upturn in form has also coincided with an impressive run from Donyell Malen as well.

Since the start of November, the 26-year-old has scored five goals in six appearances for club and country, and Young Boys could not cope with him on Thursday.

He and Morgan Rogers enjoyed an impressive partnership, with the latter reading Malen's runs well and he could easily have had a treble, but boss Unai Emery wisely withdrew him midway through the second period with Villa, at that point, in control.

Malen's form also takes the pressure and spotlight off Ollie Watkins, whose difficult individual season continues as he was unable to add to his one goal in this campaign when he came on for the final 30 minutes, although did see a decent shot saved.

The hosts were far less effective in the final third after Malen and Rogers were withdrawn, and the finale not as comfortable as it perhaps should have been.

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery on his side's 2-1 victory against Young Boys in the Europa League: "The team was very focused in the match. My first analysis is that we were consistent, but when we were winning 2-0 we did not use our opportunities to score a third.

"We know we need the goal advantage to be in the top eight in the Europa League. We relaxed a little bit in the second half.

"A team like Young Boys, with experienced players and experienced in Europe, could score one goal like they did and then you can get in trouble. We must be learning in our process to try to avoid the moment in the future like we had today.

"We have to try to get the balance - how we are managing the competitions and how we manage the match.

"We did the analysis this morning and tried to get our gameplan. The first moment for the players was very good but we must be more demanding in some moments. We were relaxing maybe a little bit.

"Today, we did one step forward overall."

On Donyell Malen after he was hit by a plastic cup: "I think he is OK."

On his performance: "One month ago, he demanded that I changed him because he was tired. Progressively he has been getting fit. He is getting numbers, which is fantastic. He is really performing well. Now, keep going."

Hear more from Emery on BBC Sounds

Did you know?

• Across the past three major European campaigns (since the start of 2023-24), Villa have won more home games than any other side (P15 W13 D1 L1).

• Young Boys scored with their only shot on target of the game after 89:44.