Unai Emery has insisted that he is happy at Aston Villa, stating that he feels valued while leading the club's ambitious project.
Villa ended their 30-year wait for a trophy last month by beating Freiburg 3–0 in the Europa League final, with Emery securing his fifth title in the competition.
Under his stewardship, Villa have accumulated the fourth-highest number of Premier League points over a three-and-a-half-year period. The club has also reached a Conference League semi-final, an FA Cup semi-final, and a Champions League quarter-final during his tenure.
Winning silverware was the final objective for Emery, but he has no intention of stopping after lifting the Europa League trophy in Istanbul.
Emery's ambition continues
"We want to win - every match, every competition. We're going to play the Super Cup against PSG, and we want to win it, so we'll prepare for that," he said in an interview with Despejados.
"My process as a coach is always about understanding the level of each team and identifying how far we can go - what our limit is, and how to break through it.
"At Lorca, we were promoted to the second division. At Almeria, we reached the first division. At Valencia, competing against Real Madrid and Barcelona with Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo was very difficult, but we finished third for three years and gained European experience.
"At Sevilla, I learned to love the Europa League. That passion and ambition became part of me. At Villarreal, it was already a strong club with a winning mentality, but it needed a few more steps. We won the Europa League and reached the Champions League semi-finals against Liverpool, which was something extraordinary.
"At Arsenal, a club that has grown enormously over the last 25 years, we reached the Europa League final in 2019 but lost to Chelsea. Recently, they reached another final and lost again, so that's still a challenge for them.
"Aston Villa has a European Cup from 1982 and now a Europa League title. Our goal is to keep competing and winning. I don't know if we'll be able to match teams like Arsenal over a full season, but this year in December we were only two or three points behind them. What we lacked was more capacity and depth to sustain that level."
Personal rule and future plans
Emery remains under contract at Villa until 2029, having signed a five-year extension in 2024 after guiding the club to their first Champions League qualification under his leadership.
"I have a personal rule: I want to feel valued where I am, because that's where people know you best," he explained. "I've been lucky that most clubs I've worked at have valued me and respected my work. That's the most important thing.
"At Aston Villa, we're improving and evolving. I feel recognised professionally, and every year I want to keep improving. My goal is to enjoy my work like I did 22 years ago - every training session, every match preparation, every game, even in defeat.
"Europe has been very important in my career. Since 2008, I've played in Europe for 18 consecutive years. The Europa League gave me great recognition, and I'm very happy with that. Now, the Champions League is the new challenge."
