‘He’s gone to another level’ - pundit praises Unai Emery’s impact on Aston Villa star this season

Aston Villa have secured European football for next season and will be playing in the Europa Conference League after beating Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 on the final day of the Premier League season.

The Villains held off the chase from Spurs to finish in seventh place, completing a remarkable turnaround in form since the arrival of Unai Emery back in October. The impact that the former Arsenal and Villarreal boss has had on the team has not gone unnoticed and one pundit has been full of praise for both the Spaniard and a player who he believes has shown great improvement.

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day, Ian Wright said that Douglas Luiz has ‘gone to another level’ under the management of Emery. The Brazilian signed for Villa in 2019 and has occasionally struggled to live up to his potential but has been a huge influence at the back this season.

Wright said: “(He has done) an unbelievable job and you can see the improvement in the players. I read an interview with John McGinn saying how meticulous he is and how they know exactly what they’re doing, everyone knows their job. So even if they go behind in games, they know they just have to stick to their job because he is such a meticulous manager.

“Douglas Luiz is a good example of someone that has massively improved. He’s been fantastic, he’s a good player as it is, but his numbers since he’s been under Unai Emery have been fantastic. John McGinn, Tyrone Mings, have been fantastic. We see Ollie Watkins as well, doing fantastic.

“Before Unai got there, it wasn’t really happening for him (Luiz), what they’ve done now, look at his numbers under Unai. Under Steven (Gerrard) it wasn’t really working out but now, he’s gone to another level.”