Aston Villa are set to host Manchester United this Sunday for a blockbuster Premier League fixture.
The fortunes of the two clubs are very different at the moment. United, winless in their last four matches in all competitions, are currently languishing in 14th in the league standings with seven points.
Villa, on the other hand, recently outclassed Bayern Munich in the Champions League and are top contenders once again for a top-four finish in the English top-flight.
Manager Erik ten Hag is under enormous pressure to achieve a positive result this weekend. Failure to do so may force the hierarchy to pull the plug on him during the international break.
If the Dutchman is sacked, would Unai Emery be tempted to replace him at Old Trafford? Former England international Danny Murphy says he would be shocked if the Spaniard wanted the United job.
Writing in his column for the Daily Mail, Murphy said: “There couldn’t be more of a contrast between Villa’s upwards trajectory and today’s opponents Manchester United. If Erik ten Hag is sacked, would Emery be tempted to replace him?
“I’d be gobsmacked if he did, certainly if he felt he’d have less influence at Old Trafford than he does now. It’s clear from the way Villa are doing business that Emery has complete trust in the football executives Monchi and Damian Vidagany, who he’s worked with before.
“They are partners rather than having a chain of command. Emery has power but clearly he doesn’t use it to be a tyrant or dictator”.
Erik ten Hag received good backing in the summer transfer window as United brought in Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui, Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte.
However, the results on the pitch have been highly disappointing so far.
Most of the fans were in favour of keeping Ten Hag as their manager after they beat Manchester City to win the FA Cup in May.
However, he doesn’t look to have the fans’ support now after a dismal start to the new campaign, losing to Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion. The Dutchman must win against Aston Villa to remain in the job.
