This season, Villa are arguably the biggest dark horses in the Premier League, not only finishing in the top four, but also having a chance to compete for the title. However, it now seems that Villa are still a breath away from the strong teams, and they will have to wait a few years to win the first Premier League trophy in the team's history.
In this round of away to Manchester United, Villa won first and then lost, and they were originally 2-0 up on the road, but the result was a 2-3 reversal. Villa were completely beaten by Manchester United in this game, and they really don't have the background of a strong team. Before the game, Emery also once said that Manchester United was stronger than Villa, and everyone thought it was polite words, but judging from the results, Emery still had "foresight", and he knew Villa's strength better than anyone else.
In the first half, because of Onana's mistake and Dendoncker's goal, Villa led 2-0 at one point. Unfortunately, they lost their rhythm after that, and on the pitch, Villa were beaten by Manchester United's counter-attack. Especially in the second half, Villa could be called a rout.
After Garnacho scored two goals in a row to equalize for Manchester United, the whole Villa team was stunned, at that time they were demoralized and powerless to resist, and it was only a matter of time before they were beaten by Manchester United.
Sure enough, Hojlund then seized a corner and finally volleyed home to make it 3-2. After the game, Unai Emery looked helpless, and the Spanish coach walked out of the pitch with his head held high.
In fact, Villa are not without a chance to win this game. In the 60th minute, when Villa were still 2-1 up, they counter-attacked into the United penalty area, but the shot was ultimately saved by Onana. If that goal had been scored, United would have been in despair, but Villa didn't take their chances, which was definitely a turning point.
After this defeat, Villa have lost five points in their last two league games, drawing with Sheffield United and losing to Manchester United, which also left them behind by Liverpool. Villa had a chance to compete for the top spot, but now they are in danger of retaining the top four as they are chasing Tottenham and Manchester City behind them.
Prior to that, Villa had been riding high, beating the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal at home in quick succession, and they were touted as a team that could compete for the league title. Now that they have lost points in two games in a row, I believe that Emery and Villa will calm down, and with their strength, there is indeed a big gap compared with Manchester City, Arsenal and other strong teams. If they don't know their position and blindly pursue the championship, then in the end, Villa will not only find it difficult to win the championship, but I am afraid they will not even be able to keep the top four!