Theres no secret that Unai Emery has made history at Aston Villa, turning them, once again, into a side competing in Europe’s top tier of football. We’re looking at who the best performers have been since he came into Villa Park and what impact he continues to have at the club.
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00:00You and Iain Ray have made an unbelievable impact at the club with the transition of
00:07so many things that he's got them from being a team that were competing at the bottom of
00:12the Premier League table at the time under obviously Steven Gerrard, the last manager,
00:16to a team that is in the Champions League, an amazing trajectory. Just how do you view
00:22his time with signings that have come in and who sort of stands out to be the very best
00:29of the bunch when it comes to the number of names that have been involved and been
00:34new faces since you and Iain Ray have been at the club?
00:38Well there are so many to be honest with you. Iain Ray's not been here long, merely a couple
00:42of years and a month or two at the time of recording. It's been really special to see
00:48just how well he's brought in recruitment wise. One player that's really stood out for
00:53me is Uri Tielemans. Coming in on a free transfer in summer 2023 from Leicester City, getting
00:59relegated to the Championship, he wanted to move on and go to find a new club. So many
01:04different potential suitors, Villa were the ones who were able to snap him up. He took
01:08a little while to get going and he definitely wasn't on form for most of last season. Towards
01:13the end of it, he was picking up a new position just behind the striker and then moving into
01:18a midfield double pivot when Boubacar Kamara was injured. Now this campaign he's really
01:22stood into his own and progressed into the player. A lot of people thought he would become
01:27such a talented player with so much potential. His creative ability, his passing range and
01:32the way he just steps away from the press as well. He doesn't seem to be impacted by
01:35it whatsoever. So many high-pressing teams in the Premier League and he's become one
01:39of Emery's key players. So very impressed by him.
01:42Paul Torres for about £30m on the best ball-playing centre-backs in the world, let alone just
01:49in Europe. He has shown signs of inconsistency at times and maybe his form has dropped off
01:54at the start of the season, but on the whole, what a signing that is and represents great
01:58value as well. John Duran, £13m from Chicago Fire. It took him a little while as well to
02:05get going, but now he's renowned as one of the best impact substitutes in the Premier
02:10League. One of the best young talents in the English top flight as well. Just 20 years
02:14of age and expected to become even better. So powerful, so ruthless in front of goal.
02:19He shoots from anywhere. He's such an exciting player to watch and he's provided some very
02:24special moments as well.
02:25And Morgan Rodgers as well, an amazing youngster. What a talent he's been, keeping some senior
02:34players out of the side as well. That's how good he's been, the levels he's reached.
02:39What sort of impact has Emery had on him and how impressive is he in terms of being in
02:45a Villa shirt and obviously getting that England call-up as well. He's absolutely fantastic
02:49for him.
02:50Yeah, he's been in an incredible form. The way he turns away from defenders has such
02:54confidence to take them on as well and he's really settled in better than Emery could
02:58have ever hoped.