Aston Villa appoints Emery as manager

LONDON — Aston Villa has named Unai Emery as manager to succeed Steven Gerrard, the Premier League club said, as the Spaniard returns to the English top flight for a second stint.

It will be Emery’s second spell in the Premier League, having coached Arsenal in 2018-19.

He turned down the opportunity to become Newcastle manager in October last year following the purchase of the club by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, saying Villarreal was his home and he wanted to “continue being part of this project.”

A year later, Emery has decided to return to England, ending his 2 1/2-year stint at Villarreal during which he won the Europa League – a title he also claimed three times at Sevilla. He also was previously coach of Paris Saint-Germain and Sevilla.

Villa said Emery will start as manager on Nov. 1 after his work permit formalities are completed. His contract at Villarreal was due to expire at the end of the season and the BBC reported Villa has paid a buyout fee of around $6 million for the 50-year-old Emery.

Emery will hold a farewell news conference at Villarreal’s training ground on Tuesday, the Spanish club said, and director of football Miguel Ángel Tena will take charge of the team on an interim basis until a new coach is hired.

Gerrard was fired in the hours after Villa lost at Fulham 3-0 on Thursday. Villa beat Brentford 4-0 three days later and is in 14th place in the league.

Emery’s previous job in England was to replace long-serving Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger in 2018 but he lasted only 18 months at the North London club before he was sacked.

But while he failed to reverse a decline in Arsenal’s fortunes, the 50-year-old has a proven track record of getting Spanish teams into the Champions League, finishing third in LaLiga three times with Valencia.

However, his biggest claim to fame is a superb record in the Europa League, lifting the trophy three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal to hold the record for most titles won by a manager in that competition.

Under Emery, Villarreal beat his former side Arsenal in the Europa League semifinals last year before overcoming Manchester United on penalties in the final.