Sa Unai Emery ya zo Villa Park a watan Nuwamba 2022, ya kafa manufafi biyu a bayyane: lashe kofuna tare da Aston Villa, da kuma dawo da kulob zuwa gasar Turai. An cimma manufafi biyu yanzu — kuma a daren Talata, Emery zai fita filin wasa Nou Camp don fuskantar Barcelona a UEFA Champions League, bayan ya jagoranci Villa lashe UEFA Europa League a watan Mayu, inda hakan ya kawo karshen fari na tsawon shekaru 30 ba tare da kofuna ba.

Murebbin da ya cika shekaru 55 yana bikin ranar haihuwarsa Talata a kan Barcelona a kasarsa Sipaniya. Maimakon hutawa akan nasarorinsa, Emery yana amfani da damar don auna yadda Villa suka ci gaba.

Villa sun shirya gwada kansu da Barcelona

"Kullum muna neman sabbin kalubale kuma muna son nuna kasancewarmu a wasannin da suka shafi Barcelona don ganin inda muke dangane da su," in ji Emery. "Mun lashe ta [Kofunan Turai] a shekara ta 1982 kuma a yanzu muna jin daɗin tunawa da turnarmu tare da magoya bayanmu, muna buga wannan gasar kuma, muna ƙoƙarin maimaita nasarar."

Barcelona suna kan gaba a mataki na rukuni na Champions League kafin wannan wasa da maki shida, yayin da Aston Villa ke sama da su da maki tara. Emery yana kallon wannan gasar a matsayin ma'aunin da ke da muhimmanci ga aikin da yake gina a Midlands.

"Barca sun fi so saboda yanayinsu da abin da suka yi a cikin shekaru goma da suka gabata, amma suna bukatar tabbatar da wannan matsayinsu," ya kara da cewa. "Barcelona suna da maki shida, mu muna da tara. Muna bukatar nuna munanmu da kuma amfani da kyawawan halayenmu."

Mutuntawa daga ɗaukar gaba

Murebbin Barcelona Hansi Flick ya yi yabo ga abokin aikinsa kafin wasan, yana mai amincewa da tarihin Emery a matsayin daya daga cikin mafi kyawun masu horarwa a duniya. Emery ya lashe UEFA Europa League sau uku tare da Sevilla da sau ɗaya tare da Villarreal — nasarori huɗu a gasar kafin nasarar da ya samu tare da Villa.

"Shi ɗaya ne daga cikin mafi kyawun masu horarwa a Turai da duniya. Ya yi nasara sosai," in ji Flick. "Yadda ƙungiyarsa take buga wasa, kuna iya ganin tsari bayyane, kuma a kai hari suna da tsare-tsare daban-daban. A gare ni, abin mamaki ne ganin ƙungiyarsa. Zai zama wasan wahala a kan ƙungiya mai kyau kuma, har ma, babban mai horarwa."

Dan wasan gefe na Barcelona Anthony Gordon ya kuma kira Emery "daya daga cikin mafi kyau a duniya" kafin wasan.

Tarihi mai wahala a Nou Camp

Tarihin Emery a filin wasan Barcelona yana gaya wa mutum abu mai yawa: ya sha kaye a wasanni 14 daga cikin 15 da ya ziyarci filin, yana samun nasara a kan Barcelona sau uku kawai cikin yunkurin 30 gaba ɗaya. Mafi ciwo sha'aninsa a can shi ne lokacin da Paris Saint-Germain, wanda yake horarwa a lokacin, ya bata raunin da ya samu na 4-0 a wasannin farko na zagaye na 16 na UEFA Champions League, ya sha kaye na 6-1 a wasannin biyu.

"Komai ya faru a wancan wasa, mun san haka," Emery ya tuna. "Na fara a shekara ta 2004, ina buga wasannin Turai tsawon shekaru 16 a jere, gasar daban-daban, na koyo daga kowannensu. A wancan wasan, na koyo da yawa sosai."

Babu kulob ɗin Ingila da ya sami nasara a Nou Camp tun Liverpool a shekara ta 2007 — lambar da Emery ya san ta sosai yayin da yake shirin rubuta tarihin kansa a can.

Canza Villa — da fuskantar abin da ke gaba

An ba Emery cikakken iko sa'ad da ya maye gurbin Steven Gerrard a Villa Park, kuma ya sake fasalin kulob ɗin gaba ɗaya, yana mai canza ƙungiyar da ta kasance tana fama a Premier League zuwa zakara a Turai. Hanyoyinsa sun yi tsanani — tarurruka na tsauri na dabaru suna gudana tsawon awowi da yawa a mako, kuma 'yan wasa da suka zo suna iya ɗaukar watanni don cikakken karɓar bukatunsa. Aaron Wan-Bissaka, wanda ya zo daga West Ham United, ɗaya daga cikin 'yan wasa da suke har yanzu suna daidaitawa a wannan yanayi a wannan kakar.

Villa sun rasa 'yan wasa da yawa a lokacin rani — a cikinsu Emi Martinez, Morgan Rogers, Ezri Konsa, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne, da Ollie Watkins, wannan na ƙarshe ya tafi Saudi Arabia. Duk da haka, Emery ya rungumi damar sake tsara ƙungiyar, tare da isowar Johan Manzambi daga Freiburg ɗaya daga cikin abubuwan da aka kara da muhimmanci.

An yi hasashe da yawa game da makomar Emery, musamman a lokacin da mai sharhin Sky Sports Jamie Carragher ya nuna cewa zai iya barin Villa don babban kulob — wanda ya sa Villa ya yi barazanar ɗaukar mataki na doka. Emery yana da kwantiragi har 2029, da aka sabunta a watan Mayu 2024, kuma Villa na ganin kansu a matsayin kulob ɗin da ke haɓaka, ba irin wanda mai horarwa yake bukata ya bar a baya ba. Ana sa ran a sanya hannu kan sabon kwantiragi bayan nasarar Europa League.

"Muna nan muna ci gaba, muna fahimta, muna kafa bukatunmu kuma muna gogayya a matakin da muke — wannan shi ne ƙalubalen da muke fuskanta," in ji Emery. Nou Camp daren Talata shine damarsa ta gaba ta tabbatar da hakan.