Five days before Chelsea pushed Michael Carrick’s job back under scrutiny, Unai Emery was asked at the Ballon d’Or ceremony where he wanted to be.
“Aston Villa is where I am feeling now so, so comfortable,” he said on 26 October, in comments reported by Football Insider.
On DAZN two days later, Fabrizio Romano went further.
“If you ask me the manager who is most appreciated by Manchester United, a manager they love is for sure Unai Emery who is doing a fantastic job at Aston Villa,” he told the broadcaster.
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Romano added that Villa want Emery to continue and that the Spaniard is “100% involved in the project” at Villa Park, which makes him a very difficult target.
Then came Saturday. Morgan Rogers struck shortly after half-time at Stamford Bridge, and Cole Palmer added a penalty after Lisandro Martínez was sent off for a second yellow for a raised forearm on Wesley Fofana. The 2-0 defeat was United’s ninth without a win in all competitions and left them a point above the drop zone.
Carrick: “Keep moving forward”
Carrick refused to engage with talk of relegation.
“We have got to keep moving forward and winning games, simple as that,” he told reporters, per Goal.
The former midfielder said the first half had been as good as his side had played all season and that he still expects to lead the team into Tuesday’s Champions League tie with Roma. The United board had already kept him in post for the Chelsea trip after heavy defeats to Bournemouth and Como the week before.
Emery’s Villa contract runs to 2029
Emery is the manager United want on paper: Premier League experience and a project he built from the ground up at Villa Park. The problem is that he built it himself. Villa, ninth in the Premier League after recent wins over Newcastle United and Manchester City, hold Emery to a contract that runs to 2029 and are drafting new terms rather than listening to offers.
The alternatives already have names attached. On Saturday afternoon, Football365 reported that Spanish outlets have the United board “convinced” by Julian Nagelsmann, with the former Bayern Munich coach lined up for a high-salary approach. Brentford’s Thomas Frank is listed as the other favoured candidate, while Eddie Howe and Antonio Conte sit on the wider shortlist.
Carrick’s next test is on Tuesday against Roma.
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