Aston Villa boss Unai Emery says bad luck and tiredness contributed to his side’s 2-0 loss to Wolves.
The Villans looked void of ideas and energy at Molineux, as Vitor Pereira’s side secured three big points and climbed out of the relegation zone.
Ollie Watkins had to be withdrawn at half-time after picking up a few knocks in the first half, while the visitors also had a goal chalked off for a controversial offside.
Speaking after the game, Emery said: “We tried to give fresh legs and tactically tried to change things (in the second half). Watkins had a small pain and hopefully it is not a big injury he has. I needed to introduce some fresh legs and something tactically with Leon Bailey getting wider.
“We had two chances from Malen that the goalkeeper saved really well and then the goal VAR refused. We controlled it better and the last one they scored the goal but in the second half we didn’t conceded many chances.
“We are speaking about our ambition and increasing our levels and then when we are not getting it, the frustration we have. We are still building a team. We got Champions League this year and are competing well but to build a team to be competitive in the high demands, we need more time.
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— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) February 1, 2025
“We tried. We started very well in the first 15 minutes but when they scored the goal it was more difficult to come back. We had more chances to score the second goal and in the second half we tried to push. We competed better but we had two chances to score and maybe if we score it is different. Over 90 minutes, we deserved more.”
Before the game, reports emerged that Villa are on the verge of signing Manchester United outcast Marcus Rashford.
But the former Villarreal boss was not shifting his poker face when asked about the potential arrival.
He added: “I am going to wait for the last two days (of the transfer window).”
