Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has prepared his side for a tough encounter against Newcastle United on Saturday.
The Midlands club go against the in-form Magpies this weekend at the Villa Park, as the race for UEFA Champions League football heats up in the English Premier League.
Villa defeated PSG 3-2 earlier this week, but lost 5-4 on aggregate, ending their quarterfinal run.
Speaking ahead of their crucial clash against Eddie Howe’s side, the 53-year old was full of praise for the Magpies who have won their last six games in all competitions, stating that he expects a difficult match.
He said: The first step (is) today. The first three points we will face against favourites to be in the top five, because they are now really performing very well, they are winning a lot of matches in a row, getting a lot of points.
They are now in their best moment and they are performing very well, they are winning matches, they are feeling confident, they are feeling so strong” Emery continued.
“They have five points more than us. It means a lot, how we are, how they are, how important is the match tomorrow. Still 18 points to play (for) in (the) Premier League, and they have five points in advantage.”
Both sides are in the hunt for a top-five finish which will be enough to secure a UCL spot at the end of the season, with Newcastle currently third five points ahead of Aston Villa, who are seventh.
Villa also head into the clash having won nine of their last ten matches in all competitions, with their lone defeat a 3-1 loss to PSG in the first leg of their quarterfinal match.
“It’s done. Everything we did is done. Take our experiences together here, try to analyse to continue improving things, but thinking the next matches, the match today.
Everything we are doing, of course, we are enjoying, we are trying to share with our supporters, we are trying as well to get our performances for everything, but now, Premier League, tomorrow’s match”, the former Arsenal boss added.
Aston Villa must win on Saturday to close the gap on their rivals as the race for European football heats up with the likes of Nottingham Forest, Manchester City and Chelsea also in the race.
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