Emery fears complacency as Villa eye top spot

FEARS OF COMPLACENCY: Unai Emery has urged Aston Villa to avoid complacency as they eye the Premier League's summit.

Unai Emery has urged Aston Villa to avoid complacency as they eye the Premier League's summit.

Victory over struggling Sheffield United tonight will send Villa top and add weight to any title claims.

They would remain top at Christmas if Arsenal and Liverpool draw on Saturday after Emery took over when Villa were 14th in October last year.

They have won 15 straight home league games - including beating Arsenal and Manchester City - but Emery remains wary of the rock-bottom Blades.

"I have to try to keep the same motivation and the same preparation for the matches as we have been doing. I can remind them and myself of some matches we played before we started winning," he said, with Villa third, a point behind leaders Arsenal.

"When we are not playing in our structure and organising our structure with and without the ball, even against the best team or bottom team in the table, we are closer to losing.

"My concern with the players is being consistent, to be consistent preparing the match, to be consistent during the match and focusing on our game plan.

"When we were winning against, more or less, the best teams in the Premier League like Arsenal and Manchester City in the last two matches at home we are now facing the same difficulty against Sheffield as against Arsenal and City."

Boubacar Kamara is banned after his red card in the 2-1 win at Brentford and starts a three-game suspension.

Pau Torres, Bertrand Traore and Youri Tielemans are injured but Douglas Luiz and Lucas Digne will return.

Emery added: "Youri, we are thinking maybe not more than two weeks, but he is now working alone and recovering his injury in his calf. Pau Torres, it is his ankle. It's a small injury.

"Every day coming is important to how he is improving, I don't know if he will be available for Manchester United, but he could be."

The Blades are six points adrift of safety, and returned boss Chris Wilder insists his side need to "learn pretty quickly" how to get results.

"It's difficult learning on the job in the Premier League, they are still a young group, no excuses.

"We are in the arena where we have to compete, a demanding arena, but they have to learn pretty quickly. The only way I can see whether they are learning or not is by seeing that in practice and in action.

"I'm learning every day, eyes are wide open, ears are listening to everything, I'm a sponge and looking at different positions and scenarios. But always learning about the players and hopefully more after Friday night.

United have the worst defensive record in the Premier League and have conceded 43 goals in their opening 17 games.

However, they earned their first clean sheet of the season since Wilder's return as Blades boss with a 1-0 victory at Brentford a couple of weeks ago.

Wilder talked about his change in mentality to try and limit the amount of goals they concede.

He added: "We have to get the balance right, I think it's an approach and maybe a more progressive approach and attacking approach.

"If you sit back, you know it's coming, but if you get more up the pitch there's a little bit more distance from your goal so that's a pretty simplistic way of putting it.

"If we sit back on the edge of the box or on the crossbar then we are just going to get done, no matter what time it happens, it is going to happen, so the attitude and approach is key for me and I've been delighted with the approach from the players."

The Blades will look to strengthen in the January transfer window in an attempt to stay in the league, with Iliman Ndiaye being linked with a return to Bramall Lane.

Asked whether he would be interested in bring Ndiaye back from Marseille, Wilder said: "I'm really focusing on the group we've got.

"I think everyone knows Illi's history here and me more than anybody because he was a young player when he first came through in my time and trained with the first team lot.

"From myself looking at a distance, the effect he had on the team in his breakthrough season and promotion season, outstanding individual and great player, but in terms of speculation I don't want to get involved."