Unai Emery has questioned whether Aston Villa fans had forgotten about the club's "fantastic season" after hearing boos during and following their 2-1 defeat to relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur. The Villa boss was speaking after a disappointing performance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where his side were second best across the pitch.
Spurs took control early, scoring twice in the first 25 minutes through Conor Gallagher and Richarlison. Villa struggled to create chances, registering just one touch in Tottenham's penalty area during the first half and failing to force goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky into a single save. Emi Buendia netted a late consolation goal in the 96th minute, but it was too little, too late.
Boos were heard from the travelling Villa fans at half-time and again at full-time from those who remained. Emery, speaking to BBC Match of the Day, was asked whether the defeat could affect Thursday's Europa League semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest. He responded: "It is a different match and a different competition as well. We are in the semi-final, and we are going to enjoy the match and the process. To play in a semi-final like we are playing is something really fantastic, in the Europa League."
Emery added: "We are three years here at Aston Villa, and three years playing in Europe is fantastic, achieving quarter-finals, achieving semi-finals. We can forget, or the supporters, I don't know. I am realistic. We are having a fantastic season and there are still matches to play. We have the same points as Liverpool, 58."
Reflecting on the match, Emery said: "Today we faced a team that played fantastically, and they competed fantastically. They needed the points, and they fought to get it. In the first half, we didn't perform well. In the second half, we reacted, but it was not enough. In 35 games, things are very good, and we have the advantage to still be in the top five, but we must continue to be demanding. Maybe the points are not enough, and we must try to recover our form and do the things we were doing - there are still three matches to go."
He concluded: "They played fantastic, they pressed, they won duels, and we were not dominant in individual duels, and they beat us."
