Villarreal CEO Roig Negueroles has admitted there was “nothing more we could do” to keep Unai Emery from joining Aston Villa.
Emery moved to Villa Park to replace Steven Gerrard at the beginning of November, bringing an end to a two year stay with Villarreal.
He moved to the Spanish side in July 2020 and proved to be a big hit, winning 66 of his 132 games in charge with a points per game record of 1.77. More significantly, though, he led the club to their first European trophy with a Europa League win in 2021.
It meant they were desperate to keep him when Aston Villa came calling but they were unable to do so, with the project on offer at Villa proving to be too tempting for the Spaniard to resist.
“Some time ago we had an unforeseen situation, a change of coach that we didn’t foresee and didn’t want, but it happened like this,” AS report him saying.
“It was unexpected and it’s not easy, as it’s not usual for a coach to leave like that and when things are going well.
“It was a major trauma, as you go from a set of habits, a model and a way of doing things to a radical change from one day to the next.
“Of course, it wasn’t the ideal situation, but it was Unai’s personal decision. He exercised the clause and there was nothing we could do, he had the right to do so, he exercised it and there was nothing more we could do.”
