Unai Emery has challenged his Aston Villa players to cement their surprise status as favourites to automatically qualify for the Champions League last 16. Villa, who are yet to concede in the competition, can make it four successive wins if they beat Club Brugge on Wednesday. The Villa manager estimates his team will need 16 or 17 points to guarantee a place in the top eight.
Emery said Villa have enjoyed being a “fighter team” after returning to Europe’s most prestigious club stage but has encouraged his players to take the next step in Belgium. “We have the possibility to get one step ahead in this competition, to be contenders for the top eight,” Emery said. “This is really an amazing objective that we can achieve. We are aware about the possibility to get the fourth victory, 12 points and the expectation for the next round to be in the top eight, maybe it [would take] 16, 17 points. If we win, clearly we can be contenders to be in the top eight.
