Matt Maher: Four years in, Unai Emery's remarkable Aston Villa story still has room to run

Yet perhaps more notably, next Friday will see the Spaniard overtake Martin O’Neill to become the club’s longest-tenured manager since Ron Saunders.

That feels fitting because in the pantheon of Villa bosses, only the legendary Saunders now sits ahead of Emery.

Saunders, whose reign lasted just short of eight years between 1974 and 1982, famously built two great teams, the first of which won promotion and two League Cups, the second becoming kings of England before conquering Europe.

Watching the development of Emery’s rapidly rebuilt Villa team, you can’t help but wonder whether history might be repeating a little, if not exactly in the landmarks of success, than in the sense the best may still be to come.

The first four years of his reign have been extraordinary enough, altering horizons in a manner no supporter could ever have really dreamed possible.

Yet after a summer of largely enforced change following last season’s Europa League triumph, optimism still abounds thanks to performances from the likes of Alysson, Brian Madjo, Johan Manzambi and Ibrahim Mbaye.

“A year from now, we could have a forward line the envy of Europe, all of them aged 21 or under,” reckons Dave Woodhall, editor of the long-running fanzine, Heroes and Villains.

Chats with Woodhall are always good for gauging the mood of the fanbase. Like many raised in these parts, he does not tend to go overboard with his praise.

So when he brings up the possibility of Villa winning the Premier League over the next two or three years, it is always going to come as something of a jolt.

And yet it is also an entirely reasonable discussion. In a division poised for considerable change - with the likely removal of Manchester City, one of the biggest barriers to success, from the picture - Villa are one of the few consistent forces, the club with the fourth-best points haul since Emery walked through the door.

Why not them? For all that the financial rules have perhaps prevented Villa’s success under Emery from being even greater, neither do the likes of Manchester United or Tottenham appear capable of taking advantage as they stagger from one identity and strategy to the next.

At Villa the message is simple: Trust Unai and all will be fine.

The decision to appoint Emery ranks as the second most important moment in Villa’s recent history, behind the takeover by Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens.

It came at a point when the momentum of their reign was threatening to wane. Steven Gerrard was sacked with Villa perched just above the relegation zone. Among supporters, there were fears that, faced with the harsh reality of life in the Premier League, the owners’ might begin to lose heart and interest. After all, they had seen it happen before.

The subsequent pursuit and appointment of Emery, within 96 hours of Gerrard’s departure, left no-one in any doubt as to their commitment.

Sawiris, who led the negotiations from Villa’s side, pushed a blank piece of paper across the desk and told Emery “show me the way you would rebuild the club”.

In that respect, his appointment also represented the biggest gamble of recent years but it is one which has paid off handsomely.

There’s no perfect route to success in sport. Much as the models at Brentford and Brighton are to be admired, sometimes it is just about finding the right man and giving him the tools to crack on with the job.

It is the control Emery has been given at Villa, coupled with the club’s ongoing commitment to him, which provides the best protection against envious rivals.

The likelihood United will soon be searching for a new manager will inevitably see Emery linked. For all their current struggles, they remain among just a handful of global megaclubs.

Yet even megaclubs have to watch the bottom line and the bumbling United hierarchy currently have significant cash tied up paying off former managers.

Emery is one of the best in Europe and is paid as such, with a salary which comfortably exceeds £10million–a-year.

In order to lure him to Old Trafford, United would have to improve on that. They would also need to find the funds to pay Villa compensation and hire Emery’s extended backroom team. That is before you take into account what it would cost to sack Carrick, sporting director Jason Wilcox and maybe a few others in order to put Emery front and centre of operations, as he would surely demand.

Even with rough, back of a cigarette packet estimations, it isn’t long before the total bill begins to run toward £30m if not more. There is a reason many of the best connected reporters who cover United have several others ahead of Emery on their lists of prospective new bosses.

Of course, Emery will not be at Villa forever. What happens when he leaves is the biggest question hanging over the club in the long-term.

There are reasons to be confident it will be some time before anyone needs to answer it. The story of Emery and Villa feels like one with a few chapters still to be written.