Aston Villa have appointed Villarreal boss Unai Emery as their new head coach.
Emery, who had a spell as Arsenal manager from 2018 to 2019, replaces Steven Gerrard, who was sacked last week.
The 50-year-old will begin his new role on November 1 after his work permit formalities are completed, meaning his first match in charge will be at home to Manchester United on Sunday, November 6.
The Spaniard will hold a farewell press conference with Villarreal on Tuesday. He joined the club in the summer of 2020 and led them to glory in the Europa League – at United’s expense – at the end of his first season.
Emery continued to impress in his second campaign, guiding Villarreal to the Champions League semi-finals for just the second time in their history.
Emery’s previous managerial spell in the Premier League ended three years ago when he was sacked by Arsenal. He turned down a return to England last year when he was approached by Newcastle.
Prior to moving to the Premier League, Emery won a Ligue 1 title with Paris Saint-Germain, as well as two French Cups and two French League Cups. He also won three Europa Leagues with Sevilla which, combined with the fourth he won with Villarreal, makes him the most successful manager in the history of the competition.
Gerrard’s exit came 11 months after he moved to Villa Park from Rangers, where he led the side to their first Scottish league title in 10 years.
But the former England captain was unable to replicate that success south of the border, winning just 13 of his 40 matches in charge before being sacked immediately after Villa’s 3-0 defeat at Fulham last week.
Aaron Danks was handed the job on a caretaker basis and inspired a change in fortunes last weekend, when Villa thrashed Brentford 4-0 to record their first win in five matches.
Danks looks set to remain in charge for Saturday’s visit to Newcastle, with Emery arriving three days later. – Sky Sports.
