After a superb performance in a 3-0 win over Newcastle Utd, Aston Villa boss Unai Emery and his players are setting their sights on a new target.
Goals from Jacob Ramsey and Ollie Watkins (2) secured a fifth consecutive Premier League win and a seventh in our last eight games, as we continue to establish ourselves in the battle for a European qualification spot.
READ MORE: What Emery said in assessment of brilliant Villa win over Newcastle
With teams still having games in-hand on us and a difficult run-in to come, it promises to be a fascinating end to the campaign but one that Villa will now relish as we continue to find answers and solutions week to week and keep our momentum going.
Given the quality of the opposition and their own form coming into this encounter, it was a big box ticked for Emery and the players, and they’ll undoubtedly take a lot of confidence from it.
Most complete Villa performance under Emery?
While we’ve seen some memorable performances under the Spaniard already, this was arguably our best yet given how composed and in control we were from start to finish.
Newcastle had moments, particularly at the start of the second half, but we started fast and set the tempo with our intensity and urgency on and off the ball to dominate, keep yet another clean sheet and show real quality in our build-up play and finishing.
Question marks were raised over our form given we had predominantly played sides in the bottom half of the Premier League table. Well, we’ve now just produced a brilliant performance and result against a side pushing for Champions League qualification.
Alex Moreno superb again
In another excellent display, the Spaniard was a huge influence with his attacking quality down the left flank throughout the game as he finished with 71 touches, the most of any player.
Defensively sound too, Moreno continues to provide width and an important attacking outlet to stretch the pitch and give us a new dynamic in the final third with his ability to break forward into the opposition half.
He was a constant threat to Newcastle, and he will continue to be a vital piece in our attacking displays and attempts to break sides down in the coming weeks and he’ll hope to be more decisive with his final ball.
Credit to Dendoncker
Having played very little in recent months, Leander Dendoncker was given a huge task of coming into the starting XI on Saturday and facing an in-form and dangerous Newcastle side.
However, the Belgian produced a solid performance as he was composed and accurate in possession, showed good tactical awareness and positioning with his movement and was physical and imposing in that particular battle.
It was a really impressive shift from him, and he’ll hope to build on that now and stay in the side if Boubacar Kamara remains sidelined by injury, as he also gives John McGinn license to have more freedom in that role on the right side of midfield.
Watkins continues to lead our charge
With two goals and an assist, it was another successful day at the office for Villa’s frontman. That’s now 14 goals and six assists in 30 Premier League games so far this season, with 11 of those goals coming in his last 12 outings.
The 27-year-old was a constant problem for Newcastle’s backline though, as he’s showing huge improvement in his movement, the timing of his runs and hold-up play to bring others into the game.
Emery will be delighted with his goalscoring form, but the adaptation to his tactical demands and understanding of what he wants from his striker will arguably be even more pleasing for him as he is an all-round and consistent threat now.
How high can Villa aim this season?
The minimum expectation now will be finishing in the top half of the table. Villa have been brilliant in recent months and we’ve solidified our place in that top 10.
However, as our superb run has continued, our objectives have changed. For now, a top six finish and a place in either the Europa League or Europa Conference League is the main target, but time will tell if we can aim even higher than that in the coming weeks with fourth place not a million miles away if certain results go our way.
Perhaps for the first time this weekend, Emery stated that Europe is in our sights. He has arguably been hesitant to say that up to now just to manage expectations, but he’s naturally also very ambitious and will want to be involved in that particular scrap come the end of the season.