Unai Emery gave a strange interview following Aston Villa’s defeat to Everton on Sunday, in which he claimed his team aren’t even contenders for a top-five finish.
Following a defeat for Manchester City and a draw for Arsenal, Aston Villa had the opportunity to put the pressure on at the top of the Premier League table by beating Everton at home on Sunday.
Yet that’s not how things played out, with Everton pulling off a surprise 1-0 victory.
Unai Emery was clearly unhappy after the game, and he gave an unusual post-match interview to Sky Sports.
“We are still being not contenders to be in the top five (of the Premier League),” Emery said. “We are now (in the top five) but we are still not being contenders. There are other teams with more potential than us.”
When the reporter asked “why do you think that?”, Emery responded with five seconds of complete silence until the interview was terminated.
It’s certainly understandable that Emery will feel like his team have missed an opportunity over the last few weeks. Their last four Premier League games have included just one win, one draw with Crystal Palace, and now two defeats to Arsenal and Everton.
Things won’t get any easier this week, with Villa travelling away to Fenerbahce on Thursday before another away trip to Newcastle United on Sunday. Given the lack of consistency of the Premier League’s top teams, Newcastle themselves will be eyeing a top-five finish at the moment.
Even so, Emery’s post-match behaviour is becoming a bit erratic. From ignoring a handshake with Mikel Arteta and lying about the reason to concluding interviews by simply refusing to speak, it’s all taken a turn for the bizarre.