Aston Villa handed fitness boost ahead of Chelsea, Arsenal and Crystal Palace clashes
Aston Villa have been handed a fitness boost ahead of their clashes with a number of London clubs.
Aston Villa have been handed a fitness boost ahead of their clash with Chelsea after Christmas. Unai Emery’s men are in superb form, now on a run of 10 straight wins after beating Manchester United at Villa Park on Sunday.
Villa strengthened their grip on third, and they are realistically in the title race at this point, currently just three points behind leaders Arsenal, also beating the Gunners recently.
Unai Emery’s men are now preparing for a number of games against London opponents over the festive period, first taking on Chelsea December 27 and then facing Arsenal for the second game against them in a matter of weeks on December 30.
Villa then take on Nottingham Forest on January 3 before facing Crystal Palace on January 7 and Tottenham on January 10 in the FA Cup.
Ahead of those games, Villa have been handed a fitness boost, with goalkeeper Emi Martinez returning to fitness on Sunday, starting the United game. Martinez had missed the West Ham game through injury but was fit to face Man Utd and will surely remain fit for those upcoming festive fixtures.
Emery on Villa’s latest win
Speaking after his side’s 2-1 win over Man Utd, Villa boss Emery said: “Of course, we need to show our tactical idea, our individual qualities, and as well, our energy, to try to connect here and do something special here.
“We are building it, and really, we needed the support, and today, they were fantastic. Fantastic here, the atmosphere we create here, a great atmosphere to support us. And how we are here feeling is really fantastic, because the players, they are feeling strong here, they are feeling comfortable playing, and they are feeling here, like something that’s our fortress.
“And through it, we are competing, and we are being resilient as well, and we are showing our individual skills, and then our wishes to try to get a special moment through different competitions, Europe, or Premier League.
“And, of course, my message is (to) enjoy each moment, enjoy each match, enjoy each day how we are doing, and then try to focus the next match like our challenge.”
On the influence of Morgan Rogers, who scored twice in the win, Emery added: “He’s really a fantastic guy. Fantastic guy, and he loves football. He loves Aston Villa, and he’s a really, very important player in the dressing room because he’s always positive.
“His energy is fantastic, and then his qualities, and he is progressively getting better, feeling confident and scoring goals, getting numbers, it’s very important.
“Of course, sometimes we can play offensively, brilliant, defensively, brilliant, individually brilliant and collectively brilliant, and we need different moments for the players, for the team, and of course, to try to share together, everything.
“We are happy, and we are here, and enjoy each moment. Everything we did is done. And again, to build a new way, a new challenge we can have. And, of course, Merry Christmas! Enjoy with family, and we (will) see you soon, next week again in Chelsea.”