Unai Emery spoke to the media at Bodymoor Heath on Friday afternoon to preview Aston Villa’s Premier League trip to Burnley.
The Spaniard discussed a host of topics, including what he expects from the Clarets, the summer transfer window, recent signing Nicolò Zaniolo, provided a fitness update on Emi Martínez and more.
Here’s what he had to say…
On Emi Martínez…
“Today he (Emi) didn’t train and we’re going to wait for tomorrow.
“He has small pain in his calf, it’s not big, but we have to take our time.
“Tomorrow is our last training for Sunday’s match and it is the day to take a decision if he is going to be ready or not.”
On Nicolò Zaniolo…
“He is ready to play on Sunday.
“His first match, he didn’t have the right permission, he couldn’t play in Europe now and the two matches against Hibernian.
“But he is ready for Sunday and, of course, we are trying to add his quality offensively, his position on the pitch, playing right, playing left, playing higher and lower.
“And he is ready to play because he’s training very well, he has very good spirit and energy, he has power.
“He is a little bit different from the strikers we have now because he can play being versatile.
“He is training very well and hopefully on Sunday he can play; he can show at the beginning his adaptation is going well and he can show with his performances for us.”
On Burnley…
“They are a very good, organised team.
“They are - building with the ball, creating and so on - very good players; they are going to demand from us defensively.
“When they are playing without the ball, they are going man-to-man.
“We have to be very demanding in how we can be consistent over 90 minutes, playing and trying to avoid the organisation - defensively and offensively.
“I really appreciate and I really think and share with our players the challenge on Sunday is going to be very difficult.
“We are going to respect them a lot because they deserve it, and we are going to start the match in the first minute, 20th minute, 30th minute, 45, 60, 90 – we are going to face them like they are, and we have to give all our best.”
On the depth of his squad…
“Yes, I am very happy.
“We are working being very focused and deep in our decisions.
“We let some players leave and we are analysing other players.
“We are trying as well to be intelligent and smart in the last days of the transfer window if we need something more. And if someone is leaving as well.
“And then we had two really horrible injuries to Tyrone Mings and Emi Buendía.
“We are not trying to replace them, we are being concerned how we can occupy the spaces they are leaving in the squad. With the players we have now inside or somebody we can add outside to help us.
“But we can’t replace them, they are very special and important players for us.
“We have to manage how we can use the gaps in the squad.”
