Thierry Henry’s ‘Genius’ Unai Emery Verdict Re-Emerges After Aston Villa 2-1 Arsenal

Unai Emery continues to back up Thierry Henry‘s claim over his Arsenal tenure after guiding Aston Villa to a sensational 2-1 win over his former employers.

The Spanish coach spent 18 months in charge of the Gunners but failed to get his ideas across and he was sacked after the club’s worst run of results since 1992. His reputation took a knock after that spell in the Emirates dugout but a return to Spain saw him deliver the Europa League trophy at Villarreal and Villa came calling in November 2022.

Emery has written his name in the West Midlands outfit’s history books, taking the Villans to the UEFA Champions League last season. But he oversaw perhaps the best win of his reign thus far on Saturday when his men beat Mikel Arteta‘s league leaders and ended their 18-game unbeaten run in the process.

Aston Villa 2-1 Arsenal – Henry Claim Over Emery Resurfaces

The win over Arsenal means Villa are now just three points behind them, and as much as Emery is playing it down, they are certainly in with a shout to pull off a remarkable title win. He has become one of the most highly-admired tacticians in the Premier League.

Most Gunners fans were relieved to see the back of Emery, but have dreaded facing him during his time at Villa Park. He’s now overseen four wins in eight meetings with Arteta’s North Londoners, losing just two, and his side is on an eight-game winning streak in the league.

Henry wasn’t one of those connected to the league leaders who were happy to see the Spaniard leave. He called him a “genius” last season and argued that he would eventually have been a success if given more time.

The club’s iconic former striker told CBS Sports: “He’s a tactical genius. He always goes out there and makes sure that his team has an advantage tactically because that’s how he operates.”

He added:

“We all know what he did in Spain [winning the Europa League four times with Sevilla and Villarreal]. It’s no disrespect to what Mikel Arteta is doing and he’s doing extremely well for Arsenal, but I just thought that if we kept him a bit longer he would have been a success at Arsenal.”

Emery was dismissed with Arsenal sitting eighth in the league table after 13 games in the 2019-20 season. He oversaw 43 wins in 78 games during his reign in North London, but the club pulled the plug amid a dismal run of form.

Villa were in a dire position when he took over, staring at a possible relegation scrap in 16th place in the 2022-23 campaign. But he quickly transformed the Villans, guiding them from the bottom half of the table and into European contention.

Is Emery Better Than Arteta?

Arteta has been a wonderful appointment for Arsenal since replacing Emery in December 2019, and while he only has an FA Cup to show in the trophy cabinet, his work in propelling the Gunners back into consistent title challengers has been superb. You could argue that his side are currently the best in Europe, certainly from a defensive standpoint.

But Emery’s success at Villa is more impressive given the circumstances: arriving at a club facing the threat of relegation and completely turning things around. He hasn’t had the transfer war chest handed to his Spanish counterpart at the Emirates, and instead has shown he’s a master at getting the best out of players who may need a confidence boost.

Marcus Rashford came back into form under his tutelage after joining on loan from Manchester United in January, with his career at a crossroads. He swooped for Marco Asensio on loan from Paris Saint-Germain, and the Spanish attacker couldn’t get a game in Paris but became a star man at Villa Park.

“What he’s done to every team has been always remarkable. He always improves the players, the team, the club and he’s Basque, like I am, and he’s a manager that I really admire for what he’s done in the game. He’s done it in various countries in different levels and always been successful” – Arteta on Emery (via Arsenal’s website)

Arteta and Emery are in different phases of their managerial careers but if the Arsenal boss misses out on a major trophy this season it raises question marks over his ability to guide teams over the finish line. That’s something his compatriot has done previously, albeit in the Europa League, but Villa’s Champions League qualification was arguably the equivalent of a Gunners title win.