Are Aston Villa in the title race? Unai Emery can’t stop the headlines he ‘dislikes’

Are Aston Villa in the title race? Unai Emery can’t stop the headlines he ‘dislikes’

Unai Emery may insist he wants no part in the title-race hype, but after Aston Villa’s 2-1 victory over Arsenal, the conversation isn’t going anywhere.

His programme notes made it clear: he doesn’t appreciate suggestions that Villa are contenders. In reality, though, Villa are in the title race — at least for now. Ask Emery or even most players in the dressing room and you’ll likely get a far more cautious response. Context matters, of course, and should Villa slip up at West Ham next weekend, expect social media to be flooded with posts marking the brief lifespan of the “Aston Villa title charge, 06/12/25 – 14/12/25.”

What’s undeniable is Villa’s strength at home. Villa Park has become a fortress capable of unsettling any team in the world. They’ve beaten Manchester City in B6 for three consecutive seasons, conquered Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich, and have now taken down an Arsenal side many regard as the standard-setter in world football.

Despite giving the rest of the league a head start — they didn’t win until their fifth Premier League match and scored only once before then — Villa are now just three points behind leaders Arsenal. Since drawing 1-1 with Sunderland, they’ve recorded 13 wins in 15 games across all competitions, including nine victories in their last ten league outings. Not since December 1919 have Villa put together a run of nine top-flight wins in any ten-game stretch. It’s remarkable.

At Villa Park, there was a sense late on that the Holte End might will the ball into David Raya’s net as the minutes ticked away. Villa had been superb in the first half, faced pressure early in the second, and after Leandro Trossard’s equaliser, they didn’t crumble. Instead, they responded like genuine contenders — finding a late winner just as elite sides do.

Emi Buendia stayed composed deep into stoppage time, steering home the decisive goal at 94:03 past a stranded Raya. The roar inside Villa Park echoed the scenes from their famous victories over Bayern and PSG last season.

In his notes before facing Arsenal, Emery reiterated his stance. “I’ve been asked in the last days about the title race. You know how I think. Keep humble,” he wrote. “Talk of the title race is empty until April or May.

“These are headlines I dislike. Many of the people putting us in the title mix now were calling us a finished team back in August.”