Only Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City have taken more points than Aston Villa since Unai Emery was appointed Steven Gerrard’s successor back in November 2022.
Emery, who left La Liga outfit Villarreal to take the job at Villa Park, has done an exceptional job. The Spanish coach has masterminded 65 wins and just 30 defeats from his 119 Premier League matches in charge of the club.
When Gerrard was sacked in October 2022, Villa were languishing near the relegation zone, having won just two of their opening 11 matches last season.
“It didn’t end well for him at Arsenal but I still don’t think you can poke holes in his pedigree. You’re talking about a guy who’s won the Europa League four times. I think he’s a really, really good coach,” former Villa striker Darren Bent told talkSPORT when asked about the appointment of Emery.
“He had the whole Ozil situation to deal with as well which went against him. I don’t think you win the trophies that he’s won if you’re not a good coach.
“You can say what you want about his time at Arsenal, but it was always going to be hard coming in after Arsene Wenger. I think it’s the right appointment. I’d say I’m excited about it.”
Bent’s optimism has since been vindicated. The club have dramatically shot up the table then, with results under Emery seeing the club comfortably a top-four outfit over the course of his time in charge.
Indeed, the club now find themselves in a title charge, being just three points adrift of league leaders Arsenal, after 17 games of the season.
**READ NEXT: [The Premier League table during Unai Emery’s reign at Arsenal](https://www.planetfootball.com/quick-reads/unai-emery-arsenal-premier-league-table-reign-spurs-points-aston-villa-return/)**
**TRY A QUIZ: [Can you name every player to score 10+ Premier League goals for Aston Villa?](https://www.planetfootball.com/quizzes/can-name-aston-villas-top-20-scorers-premier-league-era/)**
Villa finished in seventh place during Emery’s first season at the club, fourth in his second and sixth in his third campaign.
They’re now sat third in the table, having won their last 10 matches across all competitions, which is quite the achievement.
To illustrate how good the results have been under Emery, take a look at how the Premier League table has shaped up since he was appointed at the start of November 2022.