John McGinn and Tyrone Mings agree on Aston Villa record which 'lasted three days'
John McGinn is certain Unai Emery will go down in history as one of Aston Villa's greatest-ever managers as his squad and the club goes from strength to strength.
The Villa skipper has lived the Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens era after joining Villa in the summer of 2018. With some up and downs along the way, he is now playing a key role in the club's rapid progress under Emery, who will celebrate his second anniversary in charge of the club on Thursday.
Following Emery's appointment two years ago, Villa went from 17th to seventh come the end of the 2022/23 season, which restored the club's place in European football via the Europa Conference League. After reaching the semi-final stage despite the many injuries Villa suffered last season - including three ACL injuries - Emery's side then secured qualification for the Champions League after finishing in fourth place ahead of Tottenham.
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Villa have made an excellent start to this campaign after winning nine of their first 12 matches in all competitions, losing just once to Arsenal, when they ought to have taken the lead in that game back in August. In the Champions League, Villa are currently top of the league phase table after winning their first three matches against BSC Young Boys, Bayern Munich and Bologna.
"We are excited," captain McGinn said after full-time. "I think the manager is the only person who does not get excited. He just focuses his full energy all the time, like he says every single day he is that demanding on us.
"He does not let us take our foot off the gas so we can use energy and enthusiasm, the excitement we have but his determination and intensity is unmatched. No matter what happens until now and whenever he leaves - we hope its never - he will certainly go down as one of our club’s greatest managers.
"He is just so driven. I have never met anyone like him. He has said to me a few times, he was an OK footballer but he wishes he had the determination and work rate he has as a manager. No-one can question what he puts in, the effort and everything which comes his way and our way is on the back of hard work.
"You feed off your leader. He is our leader and we feed off that. He is certainly improving a lot of us. There is a great feeling to the place. I know there are things we can improve on and off the pitch. We are aware of those things. But we are going in the right direction and hopefully everything can align over the next couple of years."
Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara have now both returned to the side after overcoming their ACL injuries, while Emi Buendia has been back since the start of the season after finishing his rehabilitation over the summer. Now Villa have a fully-fit squad, Emery has serious strength in depth across the team.
"Me and Ty spoke about it at the weekend," McGinn said. "It was probably one of the strongest benches Villa ever had on Saturday. It only lasted three days that record because I think tonight tops it. The strength in depth is amazing. Just for Bouba, the reception he got was amazing. Ty got one when he warmed up.
"I have been fortunate enough in my career not to experience that injury but my brother has and I know how difficult it is to come back. Just mentally, coming in every day it is a career threatening injury. But Bouba is a world class player and we are delighted to have him.
"Competition for places means 90 minutes might not be an every week thing now. If the squad is fresher we will be rotating a lot more and you just have to respect that. You want to play every game but you also want to be successful and if it means playing five minutes or 55 you just have to accept it. That is what we are trying to build."