Aston Villa will be without Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa, and Emi Martinez for Wednesday's UEFA Super Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain in Salzburg, Austria. Unai Emery confirmed the trio did not travel with the squad after being given extended rest following their World Cup campaigns.
Villa flew out to Austria on Tuesday afternoon ahead of the clash with the Champions League winners. Watkins, Konsa, and Martinez have not featured in pre-season as they recover from their international commitments, with their seasons ending as late as July 19.
Emery Explains Rest Policy
Speaking ahead of the match, Emery said: "They are not here because they finished the season July 19 and I gave them four weeks to rest and it is completely necessary." He acknowledged the impact of their absence but noted that PSG face similar challenges.
"Of course if they were here, maybe we will have many more chances, but at the same time, I think PSG will be in same situation as us," he added. "We will prepare the game with players, even some young players, like we started with four weeks ago. Of course they (PSG) are favourites."
Injury Blow for Villa
Villa will also be without Johan Manzambi, who sustained a knee injury while representing Switzerland at the World Cup. The midfielder will miss the match against PSG.
PSG manager Luis Enrique, by contrast, has his World Cup stars available for the game. While they may be undercooked, there are no notable absentees for the Spaniard to manage, giving the French side a stronger hand for the final.
Emery Reflects on Past PSG Meetings
Emery acknowledged the challenge of facing the Champions League winners, reflecting on the two legs of the Champions League quarter-final two years ago. "Different moment, even different players. A few years between one team and another team, but a lot of changes," he said.
"How we can identify our power with PSG comparing with the two matches we played – as well, two very different matches (to each other). In Paris, we lost 3-1 and we played a good match, but not being protagonists like the second match."
He highlighted the improvement in the second leg: "The second leg, we were exploiting more our potential in attack, having a really good moment to come back the result during the second half, really being protagonists and dominating against the best team."
Despite the eventual defeat, Emery saw positives: "At the end, we didn’t achieve it. But overall, we could feel playing against PSG, one team like that, we could achieve the level they had. Our players as well, I think for our belief, it was very important the way we played."
He plans to use that experience to motivate his squad: "We are going to try and use the same message in the dressing room, and we are going to prepare the game thinking they will feel favourites, but if we are competing in our best way, we can have our chances."
The match will be broadcast live on TNT Sports, with kick-off scheduled for Wednesday, August 12, in Salzburg. Fans can also watch via HBO Max or Prime Video's HBO Max channel.
