Unai Emery has urged Aston Villa to show no mercy against Manchester United with their beleaguered boss Erik ten Hag facing an uncertain future.
Ten Hag has an excellent record against Emery since joining United, winning four of their five encounters, and he may need to make it five out of six to keep his job.
Emery’s men are full of confidence after beating Bayern Munich in the Champions League in midweek and he has ordered his players to repeat that display at Villa Park on Sunday.
He said: ‘Wednesday was a fantastic day and the fans were very happy but now I want to win on Sunday. I have the same ambition since I arrived here.
‘We have to be demanding in every match. Maybe we achieved certain objectives, like Champions League football, sooner than we were expecting, but the example I have is to be demanding and not to relax.
Unai Emery wants to see his Aston Villa squad continue their stunning start to the new season against Man United
Emery claimed United boss Erik ten Hag is a ‘very good coach’ despite their torrid run of form
Villa players are sky high on confidence after beating Bayern Munich in the Champions League earlier in the week
‘Being consistent in the Premier League is the first objective we have.
‘I have to respect Erik ten Hag because he has beaten me more than I have beaten him. He won the FA Cup last year, beating Manchester City in the Final, which is very difficult. He is a very good coach.
‘At Manchester United there are huge demands to achieve a lot of objectives but he is in a process. They are an experienced group of players. They are not achieving consistent results in the league but in one game, they can show their quality with a huge performance.
‘I will prepare the match more than I did the Bayern game. It is a winning club and it is still a group of winners.’