Unai Emery, the former Arsenal coach, will return to the Premier League as the next head coach of Aston Villa in November, the English club said on Monday.
Emery, who is leaving Spanish club Villarreal, replaces Steven Gerrard, who was fired last week after Villa lost 3-0 to Fulham. The Midlands club issued the following statement:
“Aston Villa is delighted to announce the appointment of Unai Emery as the club’s new head coach.” Villa described Emery as a “highly experienced top level coach who has managed over 900 games”.
The 50-year-old led Villarreal to Europa League glory in 2021, defeating Manchester United in the final, before directing them to the Champions League semi-finals last season, when they were defeated by Liverpool.
Prior to that, he led Sevilla to three consecutive Europa League victories between 2013 and 2016, before moving on to win Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain.
During his time at Arsenal, he led the club to the 2019 Europa League final, where they were defeated 4-1 by Chelsea.
Emery, who was supposed to leave Villarreal at the conclusion of the season, will take over on November 1 if work permit formalities are completed.
It will be Emery’s second Premier League season after guiding Arsenal for 18 months before being fired after a seven-match losing streak.
Gerrard, a former Liverpool and England midfielder, paid the price for Villa’s poor start to the season, which has left the team just one spot above the Premier League relegation zone.
Villa had won only two of their 11 league games this season, and their abject defeat at Craven Cottage was the final straw for the club’s administration, who fired Gerrard after just 11 months in charge.
Villarreal said Emery would hold a farewell press conference at the club’s training ground on Tuesday.
“Head coach Unai Emery has informed Villareal CF of his unilateral decision to terminate his contract with the club,” the Spanish outfit said in a statement.
“Emery has gone down in Villarreal CF history for becoming the first coach to win a title with the club, the UEFA Europa League, as well as the historic achievement of reaching the Champions League semi-finals last year.
“Villarreal CF would like to thank Unai Emery for the work he has done and wishes him the best of luck in his career.”
