How many points Aston Villa need for a top eight Europa League spot as Unai Emery targets knockout football
Aston Villa are on course to reach the knockout stage of the Europa League. Here Birmingham World looks at the situation so far and how many points they still need.
Unai Emery says Aston Villa must target a top-eight finish in the Europa League and claims that progressing to the knockout stages of the competition is a minimum goal.
Emery made those comments before Aston Villa’s victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv, which saw the West Midlands side climb back up to sixth in the league-phase table after recording three wins from their opening four matches.
Villa are halfway through their league campaign and have already showcased why they are one of the tournament favourites under a manager that has already reached five finals and won the competition a record-breaking four times. The Lions continue their campaign on the continent with a home clash against BSC Young Boys, marking a repeat of last term’s Champions League opener which they won 3-0 on the road in Switzerland.
But how many more points do Aston Villa need to secure their place in the top eight? Here we take a look at last season’s table, plus everything the data tells us about reaching the Europa League knockout stage.
How many points do Aston Villa need for a top eight Europa League spot
The European format officially changed from a group stage to a league phase at the start of last season, meaning the sample size of this format is fairly small.
Last term, Lazio finished in first position with 19 points, followed closely behind by semi-finalists Athletic Club, runners-up Manchester United and eventual winners Tottenham Hotspur. Eintracht Frankfurt, Lyon and Olympiacos all followed, with Rangers scraping into the final automatic qualification spot.
In that particular season, Rangers picked up 14 points from eight matches, winning four, drawing two and losing two in the league-phase. However, it’s important to note that the Light Blues only secured a top eight finish on goal difference, with Bodo/Glimt, Anderlecht and FCSB all achieving the same number of points.
The data experts at Opta, meanwhile, forecast that a tally of 15 points will be needed in the Europa League to secure a place in the top eight. They expect Villa to comfortably achieve this feat and have estimated that Emery’s side will pick up around 18 points to finish second behind Danish side Midtjylland.
It’s worth noting, however, in an identical format but more challenging competition, Villa needed 16 points from eight Champions League matches to secure the all-important eight place finish last term.
Aston Villa’s remaining Europa League fixtures
Aston Villa host BSC Young Boys. They are searching for their four win in five matches in this season’s competition and are looking to add to their impressive home record of 12 in 14 games under Emery - the most of any club on the continent since the start of the 2023/24 campaign.
Emery’s side then travel to Switzerland to take on FC Basel before kicking off the New Year with a challenging trip to Turkey to face Fenerbahce. They then conclude their league-phase campaign with a home clash against Red Bull Salzburg.
By then Villa will hope to avoid a two-legged play-off in early February, which could potentially disrupt their FA Cup and Premier League schedule.