Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has admitted this weekend’s clash with Tottenham is a ‘key moment’ in the top-four hopes of both clubs.
Fourth meets fifth in the Premier League this weekend as Aston Villa host Spurs on Sunday. Emery’s team currently occupy the final guaranteed Champions League place and sit five points ahead of the north Londoners, having played a game more.
A home win at Villa Park would put Villa in a strong position to secure a top-four finish and qualification to European football’s top competition for the first time since 1983. Ahead of the clash, Emery admitted it is a huge game for both sides.
“We are going to face Tottenham, who are having a very good season as well.,” Emery said at his pre-match press conference.
“They are going to demand a lot from us, and it’s a key moment for them too. You have to play more matches until game 38, but for both teams we can play for three points.
“For me, it’s very important to try to show our level. We played before in the last two months at home against top teams like Newcastle United and Manchester United.
“We lost but we worked after those matches, analysing deeply to understand why and how we can react.
“Sunday is a new challenge against Tottenham. As a coach, it’s an amazing time to prepare, to be with the players, to take meetings and then be with our supporters in Villa Park.”
Emery was full of praise for Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou ahead of the game, with the latter having made an immediate impact since arriving from Celtic in the summer.
“His impact has been fantastic. As a coach, you try to analyse and understand tactically how they are being successful in their idea and how they are improving during the season.
“They have changed some tactical issues: defensively going man-to-man a lot, holding the line high and how they are taking their positions on the pitch.
“This a big challenge on Sunday about how we can stop them. We want to play with personality and showing our capacity, individually and collectively.
“I think every player is very excited to face them.”
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