Unai Emery is regarded as one of Europe's top coaches and his stock has continued to soar following Villarreal's shock progression to the last four of the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League at the expense of Bayern Munich.
The 50-year-old has managed some of the biggest clubs in the world during his 19-season managerial career, after a humble start in Spain.
It's a journey that has seen him lead Lorca Deportiva, Almeria, Valencia, Spartak Moscow, Sevilla, Paris Saint-Germain, and Arsenal, before his current Villarreal side.
So how much silverware has the Basque-born coach achieved at club level?
Lorca Deportiva
- 2004-06
- Trophies won: 0 (Promotion to 2nd Division)
Unai Emery started his managerial career at Lorca Deportiva, after he was offered the job as head coach at the now-defunct club in the aftermath of a serious knee injury in his latter playing days.
Despite not winning any silverware there, Emery was to achieve great success on the Iberian Peninsula, winning promotion to the second tier of Spanish football after finishing fourth in Segunda División B Group 4.
He narrowly missed out on promotion to La Liga in the next campaign to Levante, before moving on to new pastures.
Almeria
- 2006-08
- Trophies won: 0 (Promotion to 1st Division)
In the 2006/07 Segunda División, Emery guided the Rojiblancos of Almeria to a second-placed finish and subsequent promotion to La Liga for the first time in the club's history.
He handled the transition to top-flight football with minimal fuss, taking his side to an eighth-placed finish in their debut season.
Valencia
- 2008-12
- Trophies won: 0
Emery's tendencies to overachieve were always going to get him up the football ladder, with Spanish giants Valencia next to appoint the cultured manager in 2008.
In spite of deep-rooted financial problems at the Mestalla in his first campaign, the Spanish coach recorded a sixth-placed finish, which secured qualification for the inaugural UEFA Europa League playoff round in 2009/10.
In 2009/10, his star-studded side, featuring David Villa and David Silva, claimed Champions League qualification, having ended the league campaign in third place. In the Europa League, Emery's men also reached the quarterfinals of the competition before being knocked out by Atletico Madrid, who went on to win the trophy.
Villa x Silva x Mata
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) November 13, 2019
That 2010 Valencia side was a lot of fun!
All with Unai Emery at the helm. pic.twitter.com/1EEKlasGWk
In his last two seasons with Valencia, Emery qualified for the Champions League, claiming third place twice in La Liga.
In 2011/12, his side finished third in their UEFA Champions League group, dropping into the Europa League knockout phase. Emery came close to winning his first European silverware, only to be denied in the semifinals by Atletico Madrid, who won 5-2 on aggregate.
Spartak Moscow
- 2012
- Trophies won: 0
After signing a two-year contract, Emery's brief stay in the Russian capital was ended prematurely after six months following a poor run of form. A 5-1 thrashing by local rivals Dynamo Moscow in November proved to be his final match for Spartak.
Sevilla
- 2013-16
- Trophies won: 3 (Europa League in 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16)
Cementing his reputation as a specialist on the European stage, Unai Emery won the Europa League in each of his three seasons in charge of Sevilla.
In 2013/14, Sevilla finished fifth in La Liga. However, they secured silverware after beating Benfica 4-2 on penalties after a goalless draw to win the Europa League.
Once again finishing fifth in La Liga the following campaign, Los Rojiblancos reached their second Europa League final in a row, defeating Borussia Monchengladbach, Villarreal, Zenit Saint Petersburg and Fiorentina along the way. Sevilla then beat Ukrainian side Dnipro 3-2 in the final with a double from Carlos Bacca.
Moreover, they would earn the right to play in the Champions League group stages despite not managing to achieve this through their domestic league. This was due to a rule change by UEFA, allowing the winners of the UEFA Europa League from 2014/15 onwards the chance to play in the UEFA Champions League in the following season.
In his final season at the club, Sevilla's league form dipped, resulting in a seventh-place outcome for Unai Emery's outfit. Not to worry, however, as the Andalusian side summoned the strength to win the Europa League for a third campaign in a row.
Dropping out of the Champions League into the Europa League, Sevilla got past Molde, Basel, Athletic Bilbao and Shakhtar Donetsk to put themselves on the brink of another European trophy. They claimed it by brushing off Liverpool on goals from Kevin Gameiro and a double from Coke to keep the trophy in southern Spain.
Paris Saint-Germain
- 2016-18
- Trophies won: 7 (Ligue 1 2017/18, Coupe de France 2016/17 & 2017/18, Coupe De La Ligue 2016/17 & 2017/18, Trophee des Champions 2016 & 2017)
Emery was appointed by Paris Saint-Germain in July 2016, taking over from predecessor Laurent Blanc on a two-year deal. His spell in France yielded plenty of domestic success. However, he didn't make the mark he would've wanted on the European stage.
In his first competitive match at the club in 2016/17, PSG won the Trophee des Champions as they dispatched Lyon 4-1 in the one-off match. Coupe de la Ligue and Coupe de France triumphs were to follow against Monaco and Angers, respectively. Nevertheless, humiliation was to be suffered in both Ligue 1 and the Champions League.
Domestically, Emery's Parisians lost the league to AS Monaco by eight points, whereas, in the Champions League they were knocked out at the Camp Nou by Barcelona. PSG led 4-0 from the first leg, only to be dumped out 6-5 on aggregate after a 6-1 mauling in Spain.
In the 2017/18 campaign, four more trophies were claimed at the Parc des Princes. Most significantly, PSG reclaimed their title after ending the season 13 points ahead of AS Monaco this time round. Emery also guided his side to Coupe de France success, in a 2-0 win over Les Herbiers VF in the 2017/18 final.
PSG also defended their Coupe de la Ligue title successfully, with AS Monaco being brushed aside in a 3-0 victory after goals from Edinson Cavani and Angel Di Maria. However, they crashed out of the Champions League to Real Madrid after losing both legs in the Round of 16.
Emery added the Trophee des Champions to his collection once again in 2017, beating familiar foes AS Monaco in the season's curtain-raiser 2-1.
Arsenal
- 2018-2019
- Trophies won: 0 (Europa League finalists)
Emery had an unfortunate spell at Arsenal, never really getting the rub of the green needed to be qualified as a success on the job.
In his only full season at the club, Emery led Arsenal to within one point of the top four in the Premier League. In the domestic cup competitions, the Gunners were sent packing by Manchester United and Tottenham in the FA Cup and EFL Cup at the fourth round and quarterfinal stage.
The Spaniard also took Arsenal to the 2018/19 UEFA Europa League final, where they capitulated 4-1 to rivals Chelsea in Azerbaijan.
In November 2019, Emery was sacked after going seven games without a win in all competitions. He would soon be replaced by Mikel Arteta, who won the FA Cup with Emery's former squad later that season.
Villarreal
- 2020-2022
- Trophies won: 1 (Europa League 2020/21)
In July 2020, Unai Emery was appointed as Villarreal manager and made his return to Spanish football.
In the 2020/21 campaign, the Yellow Submarine boss guided his club to a seventh-place finish in La Liga, as well as the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey, where they were beaten by Levante.
Once again, the Europa League proved to be Emery's saving grace, as his unlikely Villarreal side downed Arsenal and Manchester United in the semifinal and final on penalties to claim his fourth installment of the trophy as a manager.
Fast-forward to 2021/22 when he took Villarreal to the Champions League semifinals, losing out to Liverpool only after a scoring outburst by the Reds in the final half of the two-leg series.
They finished seventh in the Spanish top-flight to qualify for the Europa Conference League qualifying playoff, but they were ousted in the Copa del Rey in the Round of 32 by Sporting Gijon.
Next up for Emery is a return to the English Premier League and Aston Villa. After what he accomplished at Valencia, Villarreal, and Sevilla, Villa fans will be banking on Emery's ability to bring similar success to their up-and-coming club which has grander aspirations.
Watch Unai Emery and Aston Villa via live stream & TV
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| UK | USA | Canada | Australia | |
| TV channel | Sky Sports, BT Sport | USA Network, Telemundo, Universo | — | — |
| Streaming | NOW TV, Sky Go, Amazon Prime | fuboTV, Peacock | fuboTV Canada | Optus Sport |
UK: Premier League matches are carried across Sky Sports and BT Sport streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.
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