Aston Villa boss has hailed Victor Lindelof ahead of the defender’s reunion with Manchester United
Victor Lindelof of Aston Villa(Image: Getty Images)
Unai Emery believes Victor Lindelof’s experiences at Manchester United are already benefiting Aston Villa as the Sweden international prepares for a reunion with the Red Devils this weekend.
Lindelof joined Villa on a free transfer on deadline day last summer, after turning down offers from elsewhere, including Saudi Arabia, following the expiry of his contract at Old Trafford.
The 31-year-old made a total of 284 appearances for United over his seven-year spell at the club, winning two trophies: the League Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup last year.
So far this season, Lindelof has made 10 appearances for Villa and has started the last two matches—against FC Basel and West Ham – in place of the injured Pau Torres.
Having impressed in both of Villa’s wins last week, the experienced defender is expected to partner Ezri Konsa at the heart of defence again on Sunday against his former club, United.
“He has experience and he is a very good professional. He has qualities too. He is still being young to play football,” Emery said of Lindelof.
“We signed him in the last moments of the transfer window, because when we identified that possibility, I wanted in that moment everything that he did last week [vs West Ham].
“In 90 minutes he did everything I expected from him. He was really fantastic. Every day it is easy how we are working because his adaptation is so quick, and everything we need, through his experiences, he can give us.
“He gave us experience before, but maybe the best moment he had until now with us was the match at West Ham. He played a fantastic match.
“Now, he has shown us his level. He can’t stop now, and he must keep it! He is very mature, of course. This is very important.
“He is responsible too, and he has experiences, and hopefully he can help us a lot for the rest of the season.”
“How we performed in the last three years was similar to Manchester United. He is coming to us and he is feeling it,” Emery added.
“How he is every day, training, sharing time with teammates, it is something normal and he has the adaptation to do it easily.”
Villa have won their last nine matches in all competitions, and have come from behind to win three of those. In fact, Emery’s side have already gained 15 points from losing positions this season, while this weekend’s opponents United have dropped 10 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season – the third-highest total.
“To build mentality, you need time, experience, wins and losses. In bad moments and good moments,” Emery said of Villa’s knack for comebacks.
“You have to manage bad moments and good moments. In three years we have those experiences together, and the players are joining us in that and they understand.
“How the players work together since I arrived here three years ago is the example. We can analyse them from then to now, how they have shown form, attitude and mentality to play football in each match. Those things, we analyse every day and every match we play in.”
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