Unai Emery calls his Aston Villa team “lazy” as winless run stretches on | OneFootball

Unai Emery delivered a scathing assessment of his Aston Villa side after their 1-1 draw at Sunderland, accusing his players of being “lazy” and urging them to rediscover their identity following a winless start to the Premier League season.

Matty Cash’s thunderous second-half strike ended Villa’s 427-minute drought without a league goal, but Wilson Isidor’s late equaliser denied them a first victory since May’s 2-0 win over Tottenham. The result leaves Emery’s side 18th after five games, an alarming decline for a squad that finished sixth just four months ago.

Speaking after the match, Emery told Sky Sports: “We are not playing like I want. We were conceding a lot of chances, long balls, second actions, corners in our box. We were lazy defensively. When we are building our structure tactically, it has to be with personality and confidence. Right now, we are not feeling our style.”

The Spaniard was particularly frustrated with lapses in concentration, highlighting the defending for Sunderland’s equaliser as emblematic of Villa’s issues. He also called for patience with summer arrival Harvey Elliott, who he said needed to adapt his decision-making to Villa’s possession-focused system.

Villa’s attacking struggles remain a major concern. Ollie Watkins, usually the side’s focal point, squandered a late chance that Emery admitted might have been the “click” needed to turn their fortunes.

Former Villa defender Micah Richards criticised the lack of urgency in Villa’s play. “Everything was too slow. They didn’t create enough. They’re miles off it,” he said, while Roy Keane was similarly blunt, accusing Cash of sleeping for Sunderland’s equaliser and insisting promoted sides were fully deserving of the points they had taken from Villa.

With the side winless and currently in the relegation zone, Emery has called for unity and resilience. “We have to fight in the duels,” he said. “We must recover our identity.”

Villa will begin their Europa League campaign on Thursday as they face Bologna, before hosting Fulham at Villa Park on Sunday.

GFN | Finn Entwistle