"For Unai Emery, there was a welcome air of familiarity upon arrival at Basel's St Jakob-Park on Wednesday. It was a return to Switzerland and the scene of his third Europa League triumph with Sevilla in 2016, when his side overcame Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, 3-1. This competition is so, so special for me, the Aston Villa manager said. We won here, it was a fantastic day and is a fantastic memory. To remember it is very good."
"I want to build a new moment, a new era, a new way with Aston Villa. I can remind myself of the moment I had here. Emery is a serial winner when it comes to this competition. He added a fourth with Villarreal in 2021 and Villa are among the favourites to lift the trophy this season. They are the Premier League's form team after an extraordinary stoppage-time win against Arsenal at the weekend, a result that extended their winning run to seven matches."
"Victory for Villa on Thursday would take them to 15 points, enough to guarantee automatic qualification for the round of 16 last season, the inaugural league-phase format. That would prevent a fixture pileup in February a playoff would present eight games in 28 days fresh from a busy festive schedule but a top-two finish, as per Uefa regulations this season, would also guarantee home return legs in the event of advancing to the quarter-finals and semi-finals."
Unai Emery returned to Basel's St Jakob-Park with memories of winning the 2016 Europa League with Sevilla and a goal to create a new era with Aston Villa. Emery has won the competition four times, most recently with Villarreal in 2021, and Villa are among the favourites this season. Villa lead form in the Premier League with seven consecutive wins after a stoppage-time victory over Arsenal. A win on Thursday would move Villa to 15 points and likely secure automatic progression, avoid a congested February schedule, and a top-two finish would secure home second legs in later rounds. Basel remain dangerous at home.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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