"Today is a really difficult day for us to know how we can face on Sunday against Brentford because some players they are a bit tired and some players have injuries. Tomorrow we will know how they will be for Sunday, whether they will be available or not.

"It is very important to rest, all we can do is rest. Tomorrow we will prepare the match. Sunday will be a challenge for us and we are motivated. The players are ready in their mind being aware about how we can play on Sunday and the possibility to keep a good position in the table.

"Tielemans and Bailey are both doubts. Olsen is out. Traore is out and we have two players suspended, Lucas Digne and Douglas Luiz. The players that played yesterday, we are going to wait for tomorrow.

"I think it is normal in every team for players to be suspended and injured.

”Maybe there are more injured players than normal.

"Other teams as well. We faced Tottenham with players out injured and faced Man City with a lot of players as well out and of course, it is not an excuse for them and it is not an excuse for us.

"I want to be positive and support the players in our squad when the opportunity comes for them like yesterday. We had Duran, Dendoncker, Flip the goalkeeper, [against Zrinjski] try to get their performances individually.

“[John McGinn] must play better and he can.

”He is playing in good performances usually, but I want more from him.

"I think he could play better and he could be more consistent. Of course, I am very happy with him because of his commitment and his behaviour. He is an example for others. He is playing well, or very well maybe, but I want more!

"I am analysing every match, every match we are playing. For example, he can improve the match he played at Bournemouth. That is the last match we played away. He can improve.

"Being competitive, we are very demanding and myself I am demanding. We are trying to increase our demands with the players on how we can improve. We are really enjoying it, but being demanding.

"We are getting to the high level we are facing. The games against City and Arsenal were tough, but even playing those matches I want to be demanding and trying to keep consistent in our way and in our demands. We are going to analyse as well how we can face the match on Sunday, improving the match we played against Bournemouth away and Nottingham Forest.

"We want to improve on the match we played against Wolverhampton too as those matches, we didn’t play as we wanted and didn’t get the result we wanted. Enjoy working and enjoy being demanding. Enjoy getting the high level in our capacity facing Premier League matches. That is my objective."

Unai Emery on his team pre-match.



"We respect them.

“We finished last season beating Brighton but Brentford were just behind us and had a chance to overtake us if we didn’t.

"They are a very good team, very well coached with very good players. As a club they are improving and are very competitive. Last year they were close to us and facing us to play in Conference League.

"Now they are struggling a little bit with injuries to key players. But they are competitive and will play in the same spirit tactically.

"At home they are feeling strong. We are going to face them on Sunday trying to be competitive, better than we did in Bournemouth and trying to be successful."

Unai Emery on the opposition.



"At the end some moments, some behaviour, of us as well, I'm going to manage our behaviour and take control of it. I will analyse it with our players because it was not normal.

"We were a bit excited and we needed control of ourselves. When you are reacting like that, other players and the other opponent is maybe not being in good behaviour like the match needed.

"I'm going to manage everything we did that was not good and our mistakes in our behaviour.

"Maybe it's not the best for football and for us but always we have very good behaviour with the referees, always respect their decisions, VAR and I will keep doing the same.

"The players are reacting to circumstances from the opponent or from supporters and we are human but we have to build the team and in difficult moments we can control our mind and be under control."

Unai Emery post match.



“Not how the game should be played.”

Brentford manager Thomas Frank. (Don’t employ Ben Mee then Thomas).



"It was a bit of a feisty game, it all spurred from my celebration but that’s not down to a lack of respect for the fans.

"I love the club, the players and staff, I’ve not got a bad word to say against them. But there was one person who was abusing me all game, the celebration wasn’t to anyone else but it was directed directly at him.

"[Thomas Frank] asked me why I had celebrated like that, I’m still on texting terms with him but it’s because of that reason.

"I feel like I’ve done so much for the club and they’ve done so much for me, football’s football and you can have a bit of banter but not when it’s personal.

"If the club don’t believe me it’s up to them - but I’ve explained it to Thomas and he knows I wouldn’t do that for no reason. It agitated me and that’s what happened."

Ollie Watkins shows up cuddly lovely Brentford as a myth.



'Sorry for the red card but proud to be part of this amazing team."

Boubacar Kamara.



“Let’s keep going,"

"Even when we lost in Nottingham Forest we were trying to send the same message: keep going, move on.

“When we were drawing in Bournemouth it was a very good point but it was not enough to be 100 per cent comfortable. Today we won and we’re happy we completed the match winning those three points.

“We are moving on because on Friday we will face Sheffield at home and it’s a new challenge. We have to try to keep consistent across 38 matches. We are in day 17 with two matches before we complete the first half of the season. We have to be consistent.

“I’m very happy. It’s really very difficult to win away and a lot of things happened in 90 minutes. After the first half when we were losing, in the dressing room we were speaking about how we could improve some things we didn’t do well in the first half.

“Overall, we were controlling the game, getting into their box and creating some chances. We conceded two or three chances to them and we needed to avoid it.

“In the second half, we were progressively controlling the game and when they received the red card we pushed a little more. We came back and got the result, and I think we deserved it.”

Unai Emery on Villa’s victory.



“I want to analyse the match we played in the first and second half and how we controlled the match after the red card.

"Then as well I want to analyse the circumstances that happened at the end of the match with Ollie, but I don’t know exactly what happened with him, as well Zaniolo, Duran and Martinez.

"Of course, our behaviour is being fantastic, but today maybe not good. I want to explain to the players how we can react when we are under pressure in some circumstances there was provocation from them.

“You are asking me about Ollie Watkins and someone told me it was because a supporter was speaking with him. Tomorrow we are going to meet speaking about the analysis of the match and one part of it is to try and understand what happened when we lost a bit of our control.”

Unai Emery on the appalling Brentford behaviour of fans and players,



“It is the same, but the opponent’s behaviour wasn’t very good. I am going to speak with Emi, but the most important thing was that he played very well and he did a fantastic match.

"Of course, controlling different circumstances as well we had to be clever in our mind and trying to control it.

“I went on the pitch to keep the players calm. I received a yellow card for it. Emi was a bit upset and I [told him to] try and keep calm.”

Unai Emery on Emiliano Martínez.



"We were speaking in Bournemouth because we weren’t intense like the match demanded. Today was the same. They played very intense. It is part of the game, but of course we are trying to work and reducing red cards in some circumstances.

“This is the reason why I am a little bit upset about the red card for Kamara. We were playing, getting more options with one player or more to get in the box. That’s how we scored two goals and got back the result.

"We competed very well today. We didn’t compete today like we did in Bournemouth. As well, we were adapting and trying to control the game with the circumstances.

"They played without some key players. It was a very good opportunity for us to play against a team with the same spirit and same intensity when they are playing with other players. Before the match, I knew it was going to be very difficult to win here. I think we played respecting them and tried to impose our game plan."

Unai Emery post match.



“UTV 🤣 🙌🏾”

Wesley, whose Villa career Ben Mee ruined on 1 January 2020.