Emery previews Palace visit

Unai Emery met with the media at Bodymoor Heath on Friday afternoon, to preview Aston Villa’s visit of Crystal Palace this weekend.

The Eagles make the trip up to B6 on Sunday, with action in the third Premier League outing of the season to get underway at 7pm.

Emery spoke with the local and national outlets at Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training base, discussing Oliver Glasner’s side, the remainder of the transfer window, his side’s start to the season, and more.

Read the key lines from his pre-match press conference below…

On unbeaten home record...

“It’s good to have it. Really, we are feeling strong in Villa Park and playing in Villa Park, I am feeling really, really happy with our supporters.

“We are feeling strong as well, with the energy we are creating, and we are building in Villa Park.

“These consequences, coming with the good results, and of course on Sunday against Crystal Palace is our challenge to keep it, one match more.

“Crystal Palace is our challenge and it’s again our motivation with our supporters in Villa Park to try to get those three points and continue unbeaten and building the team.”

On responding to Wembley defeat...

“The energy is very important, but we need positive energy, if we can manage it in the right direction.

“Of course, the energy in Villa Park is the start for the supporters, how they are supporting, helping, how they are as well pushing us in Villa Park, and then it’s the energy we can show them as well, transmitting, playing intense, playing dominating.

“This is the challenge we have each match we are playing in Villa Park or away.

“On Sunday against Crystal Palace, especially how we performed against them the last two years, I think it’s really a huge challenge we will have.

“I am excited, motived, and I want to try to show as well our capacity against them.”

On kickstarting the season...

“Our start this season has been poor. One point from six, and of course, even being unbeaten at home, we are again remembering how we lost last year, points at home, drawing a lot of matches in a row.

“It was a good point against Newcastle for the circumstances how we played and finished this match, but now, again, we want to be unbeaten and we want to be strong at home.”

On the challenge of Palace...

“The challenge with Crystal Palace is even more, because last year we couldn’t beat them, and of course because they are performing fantastic.

“They are competing fantastic, the coach is really a very good coach. They have very good players, even they are selling players – Olise two years ago, now recently, Eberechi Eze – but they are still competing very well, and still playing in their structure so, so strong.

“They are not winning matches, but they are competing very well, and of course, on Sunday for us, it’s going to be very, very difficult.

“My expectation is again when we are with the ball they are going to push up, they are going to get a lot of man to man.

“They are very, very dangerous in transition. We have to stop the transition. We have to try to dominate, but being well organised always with the ball, even without the ball.

“This is the match we are going to watch on Sunday, and how we can perform knowing them. We have to try to change the result we didn’t achieve last year.”

On transfer window...

“We are busy and we are involved in it the last days, because we have to try to improve our squad.

“We have enough players to get a good result with those players and we have other young players, they are training with us every day, and I think they will be, in their development, important players for the future of Aston Villa.

“We need to try and switch some players, they left, like (Jacob) Ramsey and Leon Bailey.

“We need now to try to join some players in our squad, helping us with their performance they can give us, so quick.  

“But, of course, we have enough players in the squad, we have some young players, they are training with us, they are ready as well to help us.

“Of course, they need time as well, to get progressively everything we will need for our demands, but they will play this year, matches, and of course, it’s our responsibility as well to try to support, help them, to get their development playing in Aston Villa.”

On 7pm kick-off time

“It’s a good time. 7pm, still being September, summer. I think the supporters, they will be with us.

“I think it’s a good time to play. It’s not normal, 7pm on Sunday, to play matches, but now being in summer and with the circumstances, set this time because they played yesterday in Conference League, it’s obviously good to rest for them and to play one match for our supporters and for everybody.”

Watch Emery's pre-match press conference in full by clicking below...