PA Images/Alamy Images

Unai Emery outlines Ange Postecoglou expectation as Tottenham face Aston Villa

Originally posted on To The Lane And Back
By Rohan Sengupta | Last updated May 16, 2025 12:16 PM ET

Ange Postecoglou will try to use the Aston Villa game to prepare for the Europa League final against Manchester United in Bilbao

The majority of Tottenham Hotspur’s focus is on the UEFA Europa League final against Manchester United on May 21.

Spurs’ entire season hinges on winning the Europa League and end their 17-year run without a trophy. They have had a woeful domestic campaign and dropped to 17th in the Premier League table following a 2-0 home defeat to Crystal Palace last weekend. A season without European football would be disastrous for the Lilywhites, so it is but obvious Ange Postecoglou’s priority lies in winning the Europa League competition in Bilbao next week.

The Australian tactician has already suffered three seismic blows ahead of the North London club’s biggest came of the campaign. Dejan Kulusevski went under the knife to repair his knee earlier this week, while Ange Postecoglou officially ruled out Lucas Bergvall from the Europa League final after rumours circulated of him being fit. Also, James Maddison is unavailable for the trip to Spain with a serious knee injury that will keep him out for up to three months.

Before the showpiece event at San Mames Stadium, Tottenham travel to Villa Park to face Aston Villa on Friday evening. The Premier League shifted this fixture from Sunday to Friday to allow Ange Postecoglou’s side extra time to prepare for their European final against Man United.

Beset by injuries, the expectation is that Ange will field a below-strength Spurs XI to face Aston Villa. Having already lost three key players to injuries, the Greek-Aussie tactician will try to protect his players as much as possible and manage their game time to keep them fresh and healthy for the big game.

However, Villa boss Unai Emery thinks otherwise. Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the Spanish tactician has ended conversation on any notion of a walkover at Villa Park. He feels that the Tottenham boss will be taking the Villa game more seriously in order to prepare for the final against Man United in Bilbao.

“I think they are going to play with better players – they are going to try to compete and get their best performances to be ready for the final,” Emery said in his press conference (h/t GIVEMESPORT).

“Each match in the Premier League is always important for the supporters. I think they will go with their best players, maybe some who are coming back after injury.

“But my expectation is they will play with the starting players who are fit for the final and because they respect the Premier League, it will be their approach.”

Injuries, missing players and suspensions have been the story of the Lilywhites this season. Not having the likes of Maddison, Bergvall and Kulusevski is a big setback for Tottenham and a huge boost for Ruben Amorim’s United, who have also struggled in the Premier League.

Hopefully, Ange has a plan to cope with their losses on May 21. It certainly will be interesting to see if the 59-year-old has a trick up his sleeve for that game. But first, he will need to motivate his team to perform well at Villa and get a positive result. Skipper Son Heung-min is set to feature , while the likes of Archie Gray, Antonin Kinsky, Mikey Moore and Kevin Danso could get game time as well.

This article first appeared on To The Lane And Back and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: