Aston Villa manager Unai Emery was pleased with his team’s 0-0 draw with Ajax in Amsterdam.
The opening leg of the Europa Conference League last-16 tie was a slugfest, with both teams finishing with ten men after Ezri Konsa and Tristan Gooijer received red cards in the second half.
Villa will be favourites to move into the second leg at home, but Emery understands that his team will need to improve next week if they are to reach the quarterfinals.
The Spanish coach stated, “I’m thrilled. We didn’t play well, and we didn’t control the game like we had planned and typically do, but I accept that.
“They [Ajax] worked hard and were highly focused in their tactical approach.
In several times on the field, they outperformed us, and they deserved it.
“I’m glad since I was aware of the hardships we would face. The guys are a little unhappy since they were not feeling comfortable, but competing is the most important thing.
“For me, it’s critical that this result remains open for next week, and we’ll attempt to do something different and respect them now that we know them better.
“My previous message was the same. At Villa Park, we need our moment next week to play and be more successful than we were today with our idea.
“We didn’t deserve more than we got tonight.”
Emery also said that Pau Torres’ half-time substitution was a pre-match strategy to manage the defender’s fatigue.
The former Villarreal centre-back has recently suffered with injuries, and he was left on the bench for last Saturday’s 3-2 victory over Luton.
Emery added: “He suffered a little injury two weeks ago. We made a plan with him. I believe that we also needed to make a tactical adjustment.
“The plan was to play 45 minutes with Pau Torres.”
