When it was announced that Unai Emery would be leaving Villarreal to manage Aston Villa, quite a few eyebrows were raised in Spain.
After all, the manager would be leaving a team currently playing European football to try and save the Villans from getting too close to the relegation zone, and his decision to accept the job caught a few by surprise, including the La Liga club’s president, Fernando Roig.
He said as much in Emery’s farewell press conference on Tuesday morning, and there are many who believe the manager is just going to Aston Villa for the money, letting the Yellow Submarine down in the process.
However, there are other, perhaps more level-headed, who see the reasoning behind the Spaniard’s decision, and that includes former Valencia goalkeeper Santiago Cañizares.
He told Radio Marca: “I don’t like moral lessons. Unai Emery doesn’t let anyone down. It’s not all about money. It’s a factor. Unai Emery is going to the best league in the world, which is another of the extenuating factors of his departure.”
Aston Villa were more than happy to trigger the €6m release clause in Emery’s contract to make they got to talk with him, and it seemingly didn’t take them long to reach an agreement, reportedly giving him €7m/year wages in the process.
Not only that, but reports have also claimed he has been promised funds to sign players in the January transfer market, which will no doubt have been very appealing for him as he now starts his job of getting the Villa Park side climbing back up the table.
