The extent of Emery’s Aston Villa revolution cannot be underestimated.
When the Spaniard took charge on 1 November 2022, Villa were 16th in the Premier League – two places and one point above the relegation zone.
They went on to win 15 of their 25 league games to finish seventh and earn a spot in European competition for the first time since 2010-11.
In his first full season, Emery secured Champions League football for Villa for the first time since 1982–83. His side also won 15 consecutive home league games – the most in their 151-year history.
And now, with Champions League football secured once again, Villa are champions on the continent for the first time in a generation.
Former Villa midfielder Mark Albrighton told BBC Radio 5 Live that Emery has “taken Villa to the next level”.
He said: “There are going to be times when you have highs and lows, that is the nature of football.
“Villa have experienced some of those lows but now they are on a massive high. Unai Emery was a step up in terms of what they had before.”
Ashley Young, another ex-Villa player, also told Radio 5 Live: “As soon as Unai Emery came in to Aston Villa, the players saw what he had done in his career, saw the Europa Leagues he had won and the clubs he had managed.
“Emery is a born winner, especially in this competition when he has shown it time and time and time again. Put his name up there alongside Ancelotti and Mourinho.
“He’s put this club back into Europe, back into the Champions League. If you had said when we were in 16th position in the Premier League that he would come in and win the Europa League, not one player would think that would be true. He’s just got a way.”
There are more teams now who work the way Emery works, who study what he studies and have managers who stay up late watching football they don’t really have to watch.
But Emery will continue to go one step further – as he always does.