Once the November international break was over, Aston Villa knew they were embarking on eight games in 28 days.
Congested schedules are par for the course, but Unai Emery’s side would arguably feel the harshness of winter more than most other Premier League teams. They were in uncharted territory, heading into the backend of a year during which they will have played 54 games. For comparison, in 2022 — pre-Emery and pre-Europe — Villa had 37 fixtures, which means they are playing 46 per cent more matches in 2024.
The trip to Nottingham Forest was Villa’s 24th match of the campaign and their fifth in a fortnight. They are well-placed to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages but a squad that went deep in the Conference League last season feared running on empty in these winter months.
Emery has expressed sympathy and acknowledged that early season form would likely be affected by a physical drop-off. Traditionally, Emery uses exhaustive methods to instil his teaching into players and, off the field, prefers to keep a distance. But he has occasionally lowered his guard, sometimes having deeper conversations with younger players and calling certain squad members into his office.
This time, Emery has made efforts to ease the pressures on players. This has included added days off in the week leading into games, citing the importance of rest and holding individual talks to gauge the players’ mood.
Before the victory against Brentford on December 4, Villa had accrued 21 points across 17 fixtures and players spoke about the need to restore basics.
Emery’s attention to detail remains and he has been known to hold several analysis meetings on the day of matches, which detail tactical information but equally have been used as a motivational device. His overall demands have reduced, however, realising a less intense approach could help offset the risk of player burnout. Still, with little time to train and more days spent inside recovering, analysis has had to form an increasing part of the schedule.
Such fears were affirmed at Nottingham Forest. Emery was bedraggled at full time, criticising his players’ approach in managing the final 20 minutes. Villa had taken the lead through Jhon Duran and were adhering to Emery’s instructions of keeping possession across the back line and a build-up shape that had an overload of six players to Forest’s “three attackers”, knowing defenders always had an out ball.
As Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo would later admit, both teams were content to let the other have the ball. It was a largely low-intensity affair, which suited Villa, given concerns over their durability.
“Minute 70” was a phrase repeated by Emery post-match, essentially used as a dividing line in demonstrating the contrast in Villa’s performance.
“Until minute 70 we did it (the game plan),” he said. “We didn’t concede corners or chances. After our goal, they changed. They pushed more and added more players (forward). We were not that strong in the tactical idea and we started conceding attacks, corners and then a goal the VAR disallowed. We then conceded two goals. For 70 minutes, we played as we planned.”
Much of Emery’s blueprint relies on slow possession, regardless of the game state. The modern coach’s quest to remove jeopardy within matches is obsessive and Emery believes opponents can be negated by keeping the ball for long, often slow, periods.
So it grated how quickly players rushed their passes. In the minutes that the City Ground waited for the VAR to rule out Chris Wood’s goal for offside, Emery attempted to attract the gaze of Diego Carlos. The defender had lumped the ball forward moments earlier onto the head of Forest’s defenders, ceding possession. Emery clenched his fists and pointed in the different directions Diego Carlos could have passed.
The state of weariness in Villa’s dugout grew. Emery was angered by Morgan Rogers taking a quick free kick earlier in the half and, by the time Forest had decided to break out of their polite, well-mannered attitude to pressing, Villa’s manager became crab-like in his movement, jockeying across the width of his technical area after Boubacar Kamara was briefly not in the correct position behind the ball.
Forest hurled themselves towards the finishing line. Perhaps it was both a consequence of how little energy they had expended in the first 70 minutes and that they were trailing, wanting to push higher and take more risks.
However, they carried an intensity Villa could not match. Anthony Elanga came on for Nicolas Dominguez, who had been picked to guard against Lucas Digne’s overlapping runs. Forest opened up and Villa could not cope.
If the fine margins fell in their favour with Elanga’s tight offside call, Villa failed to make the most of that fortune. When Nikola Milenkovic headed in from a second phase of a corner in the 87th minute, Forest sensed blood.
The optics had changed. Emiliano Martinez had pulled off a miraculous save earlier in the half but was now lying on the floor after clattering into the post trying to save the header. A blur of red continued to flood Villa’s box and the visitors, depleted by the absence of arguably their best in-box defender Tyrone Mings, could not withstand the pressure. Mings was named in the starting XI but had been feeling unwell all day. It was only in the warm-up he accepted a sickness bug had got the better of him.
Matty Cash was barged off the ball after Ezri Konsa decided to pass to him in an awkward position outside the penalty area and within four seconds, Elanga had turned it into the net.
Emery uncharacteristically criticised the VAR for not giving a penalty in the first half when Rogers’ left arm was grabbed. The sense of injustice was understandable, yet it could not mask an eight-minute implosion, making this a fourth consecutive Premier League loss away from home for the first time since August 2022 under Steven Gerrard.
Villa have won just one league match following a Champions League fixture. Emery strongly disputes the record is connected, insisting the two competitions should be treated as different entities.
Unmistakeably, though, there is wear and tear in Villa’s legs after an unprecedented and hugely congested calendar year.
(Top photo: Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images)
