It was a festive stroll at Old Trafford. A Christmas walk in the park. We were 2-0 up, United were shellshocked and Villa were in complete control. Even now it’s difficult to fathom quite how we fashioned a defeat on Boxing Day (2023).

Still, such occurrences are now history and we must move on, but then… “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. It’s been a period of indifferent individual and team form since for Villa, with a 5-0 away victory at Sheffield United, sandwiched between two sub-par defeats to Newcastle and Chelsea respectively.

Emery must be scratching his head, as a number of players are struggling not only for form but consistency too. The latter is something that is the key component of sustaining the progress of the season to date and realising the ambition of attaining Champions League football.
United come to Villa Park still a mere shell of the force that they once were. They’re seemingly now in a revolving door or transition, players and Erik ten Hag is the latest manager struggling to avoid the shadow of Alex Ferguson’s achievements being cast upon him. They’re a massive club, no doubt, but they’re trailing in footballing terms to the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and local rivals City. Indeed, they must be unsettled at the likes of Villa, 8 points clear of them this campaign, and for my money, with a clearer strategy for year-on-year improvement.

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