The recently concluded Premier League season was a fun one. Of course, it ended with Manchester City winning an unprecedented fourth League title in a row, their seventh in eight seasons, but the race for the League title was a good one. The race for UEFA Champions League football was even more intriguing and probably the biggest surprise of the campaign.
Last season saw Manchester United and Newcastle finish third and fourth behind Manchester City and Arsenal while Liverpool finished outside the top four spots but this year produced a different outcome with Liverpool returning to the top four spots in third place and Aston Villa completing the Champions League places.
The Villains would not have been in many people’s preseason predictions for a top-four finish but their seventh-place finish last season showed that they had the potential to make a push for Champions League football in the future.
On the first day of the recently concluded season, they were soundly beaten by Newcastle United and most thought their performance was less than impressive but Manchester United and Premier League legend, Sir Alex Ferguson’s assessment of the Midlands team suggested otherwise. In 2024, Aston Villa tickets were one of the most demanded in the Premier League.
“To be honest with you, I watched Aston Villa and I can’t believe the scoreline. Honestly, Aston Villa played fantastic football and just lost to bad goals. Newcastle are going to be very difficult to beat, on their ground in particular, and their manager has done a great job there. It’s a surprising game, football. You can play teams off the pitch and not score – that’s what Aston Villa did.”
Throughout the season, Aston Villa spent only the first six weeks of the Campaign outside the top five spots and even went as high as second in the table while Newcastle finished seventh.
Now that Aston Villa have qualified for their first Champions League season in 41 years (they last played in this competition when it was still called the European Cup), the hard part starts now.
Newcastle United showed that they could build a team that can qualify for the Champions League and they did that in 2022/23 but they lacked the consistency needed to stay in the Champions League places for another season. Villa will be looking to avoid that outcome themselves and they will want to do better than Newcastle in Europe this season as the Magpies crashed out of the group stages.
Villa’s transfer business will be vital to their success next season
Because of the financial strength across the Premier League, situations where teams like Aston Villa would sell their best players to the traditional big hitters do not happen as often.
The club has the finances to keep their best players and Champions League qualification provides another incentive in that regard. Their ability to attract the best players from other Leagues due to that fact also means they run the risk of recruiting wrongly.
Moussa Diaby and Pau Torres were good additions to the team and both players were important to their success. Villa will hope to get even more effective players in these positions as well:
Striker
There was a strong campaign for Ollie Watkins to be crowned Player of the Year. It didn’t turn out to be the case with Phil Foden (who also had his best season as a City Player) winning the award but the Englishman showed that he can be an elite striker.
With 19 goals (27 in all competitions) and 13 assists in the Premier League this season, Watkins will obviously remain their first-choice striker but the villains will need to make sure they sign a capable backup. Jhon Duran has shown himself to be a good player but he only scored five goals in the League and eight in all competitions this season. Those are decent numbers off the bench but they may need someone of higher quality to support the attack since Emery tends to play with two strikers up front anyway.
Backup Goalkeeper
It’s safe to say that Robin Olsen has not shown himself to be the best backup goalkeeper.
This position may not be seen as a crucial one to most fans but throughout a campaign, anything can happen and it is better to have a contingency plan than nothing at all. This summer, Villa should be looking to add a capable number two who will provide cover for the sensational Emiliano Martinez if/when need be.
Wide Forward
Boubacar Kamara has been a brilliant addition to the team this season while Leon Bailey has taken a huge leap in performance as a Villa player this year. That being said, the team certainly needs more flair and more bodies in the wide areas. Although players like John McGinn fill the wide positions well, he does not have the creative flair that a natural wide forward would have and a player like that will be crucial for them next season if they want to be an even stronger force.
Player Sales
For a club like Aston Villa who want to stay as one of the contending teams in the division, they will have to spend big and may risk toeing the line of Financial Fair Play. That being said, the club has assets that they can sell like Lucas Digne, Leander Dendoncker, Diego Carlos, Phillipe Coutinho and Callum Chambers. Two of the players mentioned here were out on loan this season and the club may be looking to cash in on them as soon as possible.
Emery’s Experience
As a manager who has led his teams to a Champions League semifinal and Europa League titles in the past, Emery has a track record of excellence in Europe and that experience will be crucial to navigate Villa’s success in the Champions League.
Although a good number of players will be confident in their manager’s ability based on his track record in these competitions, they are capable of constructing a side that can go deep in Europe.
Conclusion
Teams that find themselves in Aston Villa’s position tend to fail in their quest to strike the right balance between competing in the League and the Champions League. Often they underperform in both competitions but the Villains will be determined to show that they can be different from the others.
