Analysis: Unai Emery's man-management masterclass has Aston Villa soaring

Tough because the Villa manager faces a thrice weekly headache over who to select in his starting XI. Easy because whichever combination he chooses, the team delivers.

Saturday’s 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle was Villa’s 10th win in their last 11 matches and their best performance of the season so far, in a fixture Emery had declared their biggest and most important of the campaign.

At the point in the year when rivals are beginning to feel the pace, Villa are powering toward the finish line. 

Newcastle, who arrived seeking a seventh straight win in all competitions, might have been playing for the third time in six days. But this was Villa’s seventh match in 21, each of them significant. By the finish, the scoreline flattered the Magpies, as a home team which only four days earlier had suffered a heartbreaking exit from the Champions League once more rose to the occasion.

All four goals demonstrated the depth of a squad rapidly becoming the envy of every other manager in the top-flight. 

Ollie Watkins took out his frustration at not starting against Paris Saint-Germain by firing Emery’s men ahead after 33 seconds, at the same moment equalling Gabriel Agbonlahor’s club record for Premier League goals.

Ian Maatsen demonstrated his continued improvement by netting his first Premier League goal in just his seventh start, before Emery’s first two substitutions of the evening into a cruise, Jacob Ramsey sending in the cross which Dan Burn diverted into his own net, two minutes before Amadou Onana smacked a shot into the top corner.

That made it three goals in the space of 11 minutes. Not for the first time in recent weeks, Villa were at their strongest in the final quarter. Of the 19 goals Emery’s team have scored in seven matches since last month’s international break, 14 have come in the second half. When, with eight minutes remaining on Saturday, the manager introduced Donyell Malen, Ross Barkley and Marcus Rashford off the bench, it almost didn’t seem fair.

Of course, it’s one thing having the squad. You also have to manage it and while Emery is so often hailed a tactical genius, the past few weeks have been a reminder he also excels as a motivator.

There is no better evidence than Watkins, whose brutally honest post-match interview, in which he laid bare his anger at only being on the bench against PSG, ensured he dominated Saturday evening’s headlines.

While the 29-year-old is destined to be remembered as one of Villa’s finest strikers of the modern era, it is also true he has struggled when faced with competition for his place.

It was the case when Danny Ings was at the club and certainly earlier this season, when Jhon Duran forced his way into the starting XI.

Yet something about being overlooked for loanee Rashford in five of the six matches leading into Saturday has lit a fire under the striker. This performance was right up there with his best in a Villa shirt, one of those days when everything came together and he found another level.

There was fortune, admittedly, with the goal, which took a big nick off Fabian Schar to leave goalkeeper Nick Pope helpless. Yet you could also argue Watkins made his luck in the way he chased down Sandro Tonali to force a poor clearance and set up the chance.

He then hit the bar, the post, might have had Schar sent-off when he was pulled back trying to run through on goal, might have won a penalty. He did set up Maatsen for the goal which put Villa back ahead, after Schar had equalised, with a perfectly weighted through ball.

Maatsen is another player who might have reason to be unhappy with his playing time. Steadily, however, it is increasing. This was his third straight Premier League start and quite possibly his finest showing since last summer’s £37.5million arrival from Chelsea.

Neither is there anything wrong with being a slow-burner under Emery. Just ask Youri Tielemans, who after a patchy first season at the club has become one of the first names on the team sheet and was again excellent against the Magpies.

Record signing Onana, who has experienced his own frustrations with injury this season, is another who seems to be finding his best form when it matters most. One of the lessons of Emery’s two-and-a-half years at the helm is it pays to take your time before making a final judgment on a player.

Saturday was also the best example yet of Villa’s big-game mentality. Rather than try to ease the pressure on his team, Emery happily piled it on with his programme notes. Director of football operations Damian Vidagany, meanwhile, took the unusual step of releasing an open letter to supporters, calling on them to back the team like never before and comparing Newcastle’s visit to a Champions League semi-final.

It was emotive stuff, which might have backfired had the team floundered. But then this is a Villa side which seems to produce its best when the heat is highest. Rather than sap confidence, the heroic nature of their Champions League exit appears to have taken it to another level. They fear no-one and after performances like Saturday, why should they?

Next up is Manchester City on Tuesday night, where victory would take them above the champions and into the top five. Would you bet against them?