Aston Villa vs Bayern Munich is one of the biggest fixtures in the history of the English club. The last time the side was in the UEFA Champions League was when they defeated the German giants 1-0 in the final of the 1982 European Cup (now known as UEFA Champions League).
After 42 years, Unai Emery and Co will be hoping to recreate the memories of the past. Although the challenge they face is one of the top clubs in Europe, that does not faze the villains as the head coach wants such a level of competition consistently.
“We’re motivated and excited to play tomorrow with our supporters in Villa Park in this scenario, this match, remembering the final of the European Cup played against them 42 years ago. Now, at this moment in our process, we have to try to play one more match. It’s against one of the best teams in the world and maybe they’re favourites with another three or four teams to win this competition.
“I want to play matches like this and I want to play consistently matches like this. In the Premier League we are facing teams like them, favourites – Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal – that can win this competition this year. They are favourites with other teams like Bayern Munich,” said Emery at the pre-game press conference.
Aston Villa fans have seen the lows in the past decade but the Birmingham-based side qualified for the Champions League under the stewardship of Unai Emery after he led the team to a fourth-place finish in the league last season.
Coming off a disappointing 2-2 draw against Ipswich in the Premier League on the weekend, Emery admitted his team’s defense is not what it was last year but claimed the responsibility falls on the team as a whole.
“We are not defending like last year. It’s not for the defenders or the goalkeeper, it’s for everyone. The first defenders are the strikers and the first attacking player is the goalkeeper We have to improve because we cannot concede the goals we are conceding each match we are playing. I believe in our work but we are conceding more goals than normal,” he added.