{"id":297459,"date":"2023-12-07T23:25:40","date_gmt":"2023-12-07T23:25:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/?p=297459"},"modified":"2023-12-07T23:25:40","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T23:25:40","slug":"thrillers-at-villa-five-unsung-heroes-who-have-emerys-boys-flying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/thrillers-at-villa-five-unsung-heroes-who-have-emerys-boys-flying\/","title":{"rendered":"Thrillers at Villa: Five unsung heroes who have Emery&apos;s boys flying"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1> Thrillers at the Villa: A calm and classy centre-back, the versatile England defender and a force of nature in midfield&#8230; five unsung heroes who have Unai Emery&#8217;s boys flying high<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Aston Villa have enjoyed a remarkable transformation under Unai Emery<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Chris Sutton: Villa are &#8216;proper top four contenders&#8217; after win over Man City<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Man City are vulnerable, but come the spring they will put on the afterburners. Leaders Arsenal must seize their moment now &#8211; Listen to It&#8217;s All Kicking Off<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Unai Emery is keen to keep a lid on expectations but\u00a0Aston Villa have enjoyed a remarkable transformation under the Spaniard.<\/p>\n<p>Leon Bailey scored a late winner against Pep Guardiola&#8217;s side at Villa Park on Wednesday night to record their third win in four games and move them above Man City and into third in the Premier League table.<\/p>\n<p>It continues a superb season that has already seen them beat Chelsea and Tottenham and they will be seen as serious contenders to claim a place in Europe&#8217;s elite should they continue their upward trajectory.<\/p>\n<p>The bedrock to Villa&#8217;s strong campaign has been their home form.\u00a0They have won an astonishing 13 successive Premier League games at Villa Park.<\/p>\n<p>Mail Sport&#8217;s Jack Gaughan highlights five unsung heroes who have Unai Emery&#8217;s boys flying high.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/07\/20\/78708321-0-image-a-50_1701979553604.jpg\" height=\"422\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Aston Villa have enjoyed a remarkable transformation under manager\u00a0Unai Emery<\/p>\n<h2>DIEGO CARLOS<\/h2>\n<p>Villa spent around \u00a326million on the Brazilian when Steven Gerrard was in charge but he lost nearly all of his debut campaign in England to a ruptured achilles tendon sustained two games in.<\/p>\n<p>Carlos had built a reputation as a strong no-nonsense centre half at Sevilla and is still fighting his way into this team under Unai Emery.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He did a superb job helping to nullify Erling Haaland on Wednesday night, not needing to attempt a single tackle all night.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s had fitness problems this year too and Villa need to keep him fit given the prolonged absence of\u00a0Tyrone Mings<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/07\/23\/78716333-12839159-image-a-30_1701991034509.jpg\" height=\"458\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Diego Carlos\u00a0did a superb job helping to nullify Erling Haaland on Wednesday night<\/p>\n<h2>EZRI KONSA<\/h2>\n<p>With\u00a0a first England call-up now under his belt, Konsa is thriving and showing a versatility for Emery.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Matty Cash dropped to the bench in midweek , with Konsa tasked with keeping Phil Foden quiet from right back rather than his normal\u00a0central berth.<\/p>\n<p>There has been an element of the 26-year-old remaining in the shadows and overlooked for others but he is now earning deserved plaudits.<\/p>\n<p>Even from within the back four, gives Villa an energy.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/07\/23\/78708225-12839159-Ezri_Konsa_and_Boubacar_Kamara_have_played_a_key_role_in_Aston_V-a-27_1701990974818.jpg\" height=\"460\" width=\"306\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/07\/23\/78708275-12839159-Ezri_Konsa_and_Boubacar_Kamara_have_played_a_key_role_in_Aston_V-a-28_1701990974818.jpg\" height=\"460\" width=\"306\"><\/p>\n<p>Ezri Konsa (L) and\u00a0Boubacar Kamara have played a key role in Aston Villa&#8217;s upturn in fortunes<\/p>\n<h2>PAU TORRES<\/h2>\n<p>Forever linked with the Premier League, Torres secured a \u00a331m move from Villarreal last summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Emery coached him for two years in Spain, beating Manchester United in the 2021 Europa League final, and it was only a matter of time before he came to England.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Classy on the ball and never flustered, Torres is a calming influence amid the chaos.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Positionally sound and offers a nice balance on the left-hand side of a central\u00a0defensive pairing<\/p>\n<h2>BOUBACAR KAMARA<\/h2>\n<p>Another signed by Gerrard and now truly flourishing, Kamara is a force of nature in central midfield.<\/p>\n<p>A near ever-present so far in the Premier League and does the dirtier work so others ahead can go and press home advantages.<\/p>\n<p>Nobody made more than Kamara\u2019s three interceptions during the victory over Manchester City.\u00a0All three were in very different areas of the pitch, showcasing how much ground he covers. His pass completion of 89 per cent wouldn\u2019t look\u00a0out of place in the best City side<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/12\/07\/23\/78708217-12839159-Forward_Leon_Bailey_has_only_just_fought_a_way_back_into_Emery_s-a-29_1701990974819.jpg\" height=\"425\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Forward Leon Bailey\u00a0has only just fought a way back into Emery\u2019s preferred starting XI<\/p>\n<h2>LEON BAILEY<\/h2>\n<p>The Jamaican has only just fought a way back into Emery\u2019s preferred starting XI with the impressive Moussa Diaby usually selected out on the right wing.<\/p>\n<p>Now has two goals in two after also scoring at Bournemouth on Sunday. It\u2019s three in four league starts this term, as well, and Bailey always offers a threat in the final third of the pitch.<\/p>\n<p>The way in which he terrorised Croatian defender Josko Gvardiol, hugging the touchline to stretch City\u2019s system, showed the options at Emery\u2019s disposal as Villa chase a Champions League place.<\/p>\n<h3>IT&#8217;S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><span><span>It&#8217;s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span>It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12839159\/Thrillers-Villa-clam-classy-centre-versatile-England-defender-force-nature-midfield-five-unsung-heroes-Unai-Emerys-boys-flying-high.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Thrillers at the Villa: A calm and classy centre-back, the versatile England defender and a force of nature in midfield&#8230; five unsung heroes who have <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/thrillers-at-villa-five-unsung-heroes-who-have-emerys-boys-flying\/\" title=\"Thrillers at Villa: Five unsung heroes who have Emery&amp;apos;s boys flying\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":297458,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Thrillers at Villa: Five unsung heroes who have Emery&amp;apos;s boys flying - Sportstoft<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/thrillers-at-villa-five-unsung-heroes-who-have-emerys-boys-flying\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Thrillers at Villa: Five unsung heroes who have Emery&amp;apos;s boys flying - Sportstoft\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Thrillers at the Villa: A calm and classy centre-back, the versatile England defender and a force of nature in midfield&#8230; 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