Unai Emery feels Aston Villa’s win against Fulham is a big boost for the team’s prospects in the remainder of the season.
Tyrone Mings rose highest to head the only goal of the game after 21 minutes at Villa Park as the hosts recorded five consecutive home wins.
A strong defensive performance restricted their opponents to one shot during the entire contest, and Villa’s head coach was proud of the progress his players have made.
“I’m very happy to enjoy the moment with our supporters here at home,” he said.
“I remember when we had home matches against Leicester and Arsenal and we conceded four goals in each match. It was a very upsetting moment.
“We came back trying to be strong defensively and we won 1-0 against Crystal Palace, 3-0 Bournemouth, 2-0 Nottingham, 3-0 Newcastle and today as well, 1-0. Five very good victories with clean sheets, it’s really amazing.
“We were trying to achieve our style being consistent, and I think in the first half today we played very well. In the second half, we were more brilliant defensively because we didn’t control the game like we did in the first half.
“We were feeling strong in our mind and trying to play each moment like the match was demanding. They were in front of us two months ago and we’ve come back at them.
“For the next matches, trying to keep our opportunity to get a European position, it’s a very good victory today.”
Mings’ goal was his first since November 2021 – a record Emery has been trying to improve since taking charge of the club.
The defender’s strike left Emery feeling upbeat heading into the final six matches of the campaign.
He said: “I was demanding him to use his potential in the set pieces.
“Today it was important to add different options to score for the team and the centre-backs as well. I want centre-backs trying to score goals, and he did it.
“We can be proud of our work, proud of our victory. We tried to connect and transmit to our supporters our desire to be strong here.
“We are being positive and realistic; we can have more chances in the next matches.”
