Aston Villa

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

"No excuses," said Unai Emery.

The Aston Villa head coach was talking about his team's form amid Villa Park's rebuild.

The North Stand is a shell and currently closed for building work as the club increases the stadium's capacity to over 50,000.

It is part of the club's plan to help Villa bridge the financial gap in the Premier League, but they may have to endure some short-term pain for long-term gain.

"It is something to improve us for the future," said the Spaniard.

"We must try to be together and without 7,000 supporters we must push everyone. We must play better football, compete better, be more focused. Those are more important than the stand.

"We are realistic with how we are working, improving. The things are not [good] enough yet, a lot of conversations with the team, meetings, video, practising and each match trying to show and improve."

Champions Arsenal and Nottingham Forest have already claimed three points at Villa Park this season, with unbeaten Brentford taking a point.

Nicolas Jackson's equalising goal against the Bees was the first Villa had scored in front of the skeleton that was their North Stand this season.

Yet Villa's home struggles are not new. Since the turn of the year they have lost the aura of invincibility which Emery has brought since his arrival almost four years ago.

Between November 2022 and January 2026, they lost just eight of 61 home Premier League games, winning 44 of them.

That included 15 straight wins between March 2023 and December 2023.

They also went 12 months unbeaten in the top flight between August 2024 and August 2025, but since the turn of the year Villa have been fragile at home in comparison.

Read more on the Villa Park revamp

Matt Jones
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa will be on the hunt for their first home win of the season when they welcome Fenerbahce to Villa Park on Wednesday. After a 2-2 draw with Brentford on Saturday, Villa have now only won four of their past 12 home league matches.

Head coach Unai Emery will hope a change of competition will spark a change in fortunes for his team, although a Fenerbahce team packed with Premier League experience will be a threat.

The Turkish giants are back in the Champions League for the first time since 2008-09 and come into the game after a 3-0 win at Rizespor in the Turkish Super Lig. After a tricky start to the season, they are now up to fourth in the Turkish top flight.

Did you know?

• Villa have won all three of their meetings with Fenerbahce, the most recent being a 1-0 away victory in the Europa League in January.

• In terms of average age, only Napoli (29 years 71 days) had an older starting XI than Fenerbahce (29 years 25 days) in the opening matchround of this season's Champions League. It was the oldest XI they have named in 41 Champions League games.

Image source, Getty Images

Key Fenerbahce player - Vedat Muriqi

The Kosovo striker has been in red-hot form this season and scored four times in the 8-0 win over Eyupspor before the international break.

Muriqi signed a three-year contract with Fenerbahce in the summer after scoring 23 La Liga goals for Mallorca last season, the best return of his club career.

His nickname at Mallorca was 'The Pirate', owing to his goal celebration of covering one eye.

Fenerbahce squad summary

Fenerbahce's squad is packed with former Premier League players, including goalkeeper Ederson, defenders Nathan Ake and Nelson Semedo, midfielders Mateo Guendouzi and N'Golo Kante, and forwards Mason Greenwood and Romelu Lukaku.

Marco Asensio will also come up against his old club. The Spain forward scored eight goals in a loan spell with Villa in 2025, including three in the Champions League.

Josh Lobley
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Wednesday's Champions League game against Fenerbache at Villa Park (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Midfielder Leon Goretzka has returned from injury and is available for his debut. However, defender Matteo Ruggeri is unavailable for "more than one month", after he was forced off with injury against Brentford.

• On Ian Maatsen's injury: "He is not yet available. I think he is getting better and he should be joining us in a few days or a week, so it's positive."

• George Hemmings is similarly unavailable with a "small pain," but could return for Saturday's match against Newcastle.

• On the importance of playing in the Champions League: "It is a huge challenge and an exciting moment that we can share in Villa Park. We remind ourselves of 1982, when we won this title, and of how much we enjoyed it two years ago."

• More on their previous campaign: "Being in the top eight was a really amazing achievement. The objective is the same but we know it is very difficult. We must win five or six matches out of eight, more or less."

• On playing in the competition at Villa Park with an empty stand: "One handicap is having fewer supporters, but at the start of the season it was something the club decided to improve for the future. No excuses, we must try to get together without 7,000 supporters and play better football."

Follow Tuesday's European news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Listen to Matty Cash speaking to the media below or on BBC Sounds here

Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

Imagine a world where Manchester City had not used "sham contracts" to build a team capable of winning three Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three EFL Cups.

If City were the winners, then there had to be losers - and not just those teams who finished runners-up or lost cup finals.

The potential impact runs much deeper and includes missed Champions League qualification, relegation and Premier League prize money.

Thirty-five other teams played in the English top flight between 2009 and 2018.

And every one could in some way claim to have been left financially out of pocket.

Learn more about how the numbers were calculated here

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Aston Villa and Brentford.

Here are some of your comments:

Villa fans

Prit: Villa slowly and steadily improving, but we really need to finish the chances we create. It looks like Jackson and Manzambi are creating a strong partnership, but I am still concerned about our defence as teams easily go through them. But, Brentford have shown this season they are hard to play against. We lost to them three times last season and, while I would have liked to take the win, I am happy for the draw. Glass is still half full.

Luyimbaazi: The defence still needs to adjust. Maybe it's time for Taylor Harwood-Bellis to earn some minutes in the league, especially now the current defence seems to be in disarray. Hopefully we shall get to see Madjo too.

Alan: An improvement on the Nottingham Forest game but Villa couldn't match the intensity of a very physical Brentford, who will surprise a few this season. Totally inept refereeing didn't help much either for both sides, but particularly Villa in the first half. Fair result overall. On we go.

Gary: We need to remember that Villa are a side in rebuild mode and things will take time. We played a team high in confidence and on an unbeaten run, and we could have won the game with more ruthless finishing. That said, a draw was a fair result.

Brentford fans

Charlie: Good end-to-end football. We seemed to be closing them down in packs, quicker and in more numbers. Ref seemed a bit inconsistent on pushing and shoving and I think McGinn could have had a second yellow on more than one occasion.

Joe: While I'm pleased with the grit and the effort, it definitely looked like we were a bit out of sorts after a long international break. It felt like we'd lose out at every deflection or second ball and Villa attackers would regularly find themselves in a lot of space. Very happy that we kept ourselves in the game despite this and earned a valuable point.

Andy: Good second-half performance. Shame the ref was so bad - he spoiled what could and should have been three points for Brentford.

Stuart: A superb effort from the boys in yellow, showing great resilience to respond so quickly after McGinn's lucky deflected goal.

Laura Kenyon
Final Score reporter

Image source, Getty Images

The North Stand – currently closed for building work – has become a symbol of Aston Villa's current position: under construction. Unai Emery's side are a work in progress.

The spine of the side that won the Europa League has since departed but there are signs of a new team beginning to build.

Villa are yet to replicate anywhere near the early form we saw at the start of last season. But they display encouraging signs of renovation.

Zion Suzuki – the first Japanese goalkeeper to play in the Champions League – was a commanding presence against Brentford.

Nicolas Jackson is showing signs he could be the prolific striker Villa fans hoped he would be when replacing Ollie Watkins and becoming a club record signing.

The builders perched on the scaffolding, wearing hard hats and high-vis, had the best seat in the house to observe those performances.

There is a long way to go. The new stand is far from finished but will the new-look Villa squad be closer to a final product come their next home game against Manchester City?

Aston Villa are planning to make a loan move for 20-year-old Brazil and real Madrid forward Endrick in January. (Football Insider, external)

Villa, Arsenal and Newcastle United are chasing Norway forward Antonio Nusa, who is valued at £60m by RB Leipzig. (Ekrem Konur, external)

Villa are weighing up an £18m bid to sign Athletico Paranaense and Colombia striker Kevin Viveros, 26. (RTI Esporte - in Portuguese, external)

Everton hold the strongest interest in Rennes striker Esteban Lepaul, although Aston Villa, Brentford, Brighton and Leeds United have the 26-year-old France international on their radar. (Teamtalk, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Charlotte Coates
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Before Saturday's game, Unai Emery issued a rallying cry for his side to improve their home form.

The cry was not answered as he'd have wanted.

Coming into this one against Brentford, Villa Park was yet to see a home Premier League victory this season - and that remains the case after a frustrating draw.

Emery refused to use the redevelopment of the North Stand as an excuse for their home slump but it is clear the atmosphere has understandably dampened.

On the pitch, there were positives for Emery to take, especially after the defeat by Nottingham Forest in their last outing on home soil.

Heads could have dropped when Brentford took the lead but the quick response showed the character in the side.

And Villa thought they had secured that elusive home win when John McGinn struck in the second half, but it wasn't to be.

Villa's first point at home this season is something to build on against a very capable Brentford side but they'll have to improve when they welcome leaders Manchester City on 24 October.

Listen to Emery's post-match analysis below or on BBC Sounds here

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery, spoke to BBC Match of the Day after his side's draw against Brentford: "To draw at home is not a good result. I think we played a match with a lot of things improved from our last home match against [Nottingham] Forest. We created chances but conceded more chances than I expected.

"Maybe the result is fair but analysing how we are improving things, competing better I can't tell nothing to the players about the match. We'll try to analyse again how we can improve even more. A better match than against Forest. Keep going forward. We tried, we pushed, we had chances but so did they. At the end we could've won, but also we could've lost.

"We must try to control the match and structure better with possession and positioning. We were sometimes in a hurry and losing the ball. Overall in 90 minutes I think it was equal from both teams.

"The new players need time to adapt to our structure. We need defensively to keep compact and in set pieces stay compact. Overall, we are in the right way to try to be optimistic but understanding the process we need time.

"The first match after the break - we need more rest and on Monday to focus on the Champions League match at home. We'll try to keep improving things and in the table to achieve the three points and be consistent. We are very motivated but we need to build the team, analyse, and keep improving."

Did you know?

• Aston Villa have failed to win any of their opening three home games in a league campaign for the first time since 2015-16, when they were without a win in their first nine league matches at Villa Park (D3 L6).

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Aston Villa's performance

What did you make of Brentford's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Monday for a selection of your replies.

There are six games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Arsenal v Leeds United (12:30)

• Aston Villa v Brentford - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Chelsea v Bournemouth - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Ipswich Town v Fulham

• Sunderland v Brighton

• Manchester United v Tottenham (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 15:00 BST unless stated.

Follow all of the action and reaction here

How to follow the Premier League weekend across the BBC

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on your smart speaker. Just say "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play Manchester United v Tottenham" or "Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play the Brentford match", for example.

New this season: Live match updates

Fans of Premier League clubs can now get real-time scores live on their phone lock screen for every game.

Simply follow your favourite football teams on the BBC Sport app for updates throughout the 2026-27 season.

Find out more here

Image source, BBC Sport

New this season: Match of the Day Predictor

Simply predict the outcome of the six fixtures we've selected from across domestic and European competitions every week.

Players can join at any time, get involved with the latest round and start building a streak.

Read more about it here

You can find the predictor in the navigation bar at the top of this page, or on this link

Brentford were one of the teams who definitely didn't want the international break, while I feel like it might have done Aston Villa the world of good.

They have made very different starts to the new season - Brentford are still unbeaten and, while I kept on predicting Villa would win, the only time I was right was when they beat Tottenham last time out.

Despite the difference in their form, I am going to stick with Villa here, even though the Bees have been seriously impressive so far.

Johan Manzambi is fit again and seems to have found his best form while playing for Switzerland. He could make the difference here too.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Noel Sliney
BBC Sport senior journalist

Aston Villa are in danger of losing their opening three home league matches in a season for only the third time, having done so in 1946 and 1969.

Unbeaten opponents Brentford won 1-0 with 10 men at Villa Park last season to complete a first league double in this fixture.

Can Villa park the doubts?

A run of seven games in 22 days this month might not define Aston Villa's season but it is likely to shape it.

Were the winless opening four fixtures of the season a false start, with six core players having departed and only two of the replacements available and trusted to play regularly straight away?

Perhaps. Villa earned three successive away wins in as many competitions before the international break; the last of those, a 3-2 league victory at Spurs, marked the true start of a new era as – for the first time – more than half of Unai Emery's starting XI were summer signings.

Five of Villa's seven matches in October are at home, providing an opportunity to build momentum domestically and in Europe. However, Villa Park is no longer the "fortress" Emery was aptly able to describe it as for so long.

Since Aston Villa beat Nottingham Forest in the new year to record an 11th straight home win, they have lost six of their subsequent 11 top-flight games in Birmingham. Only three Premier League ever-presents across this season and last have a worse home record over the same period.

It contrasts sharply with their home form over the preceding 34 months, which was in touching distance of being the best in the division. Villa's home decline began with back-to-back 1-0 defeats by Everton and Brentford, while the closure of the North Stand for redevelopment this season has led to a subdued atmosphere.

Brentford's record start

Brentford are fourth in the table on nine points, their highest tally at this stage of a top-flight season.

It is also the first time they have gone unbeaten in their opening five top-flight fixtures – the Bees last fared better 20 years ago in League One. To top it off, Brentford's current seven-match league run without defeat since May is the longest in the division.

A 3-0 derby dismantling of Chelsea last time out prompted head coach Keith Andrews to admit his side are "in a pretty good place", and he rewarded the players – or at least those not called up for international duty – with a week off.

Andrews has been enthused by Brentford's "unpredictable" ability to play in different ways, from controlling games through possession to defending deep and carrying a counter-attacking threat.

One constant, though, is that they don't fall behind. That is hardly surprising for a team yet to lose, but it is eye-catching that Brentford have trailed for a mere 0.6% of their five games so far. All of that is accounted for by the three minutes and 10 seconds between them going 2-1 down away to Bournemouth and equalising.

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Boss Unai Emery has demanded home improvement from Aston Villa after using an expletive to describe their recent home form.

Villa host Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday looking for their first home win of the season.

Wins over Club Brugge in the Champions League, Coventry in the Carabao Cup and a Premier League victory at Tottenham came before the break.

But Villa have lost their home games against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, with the unbeaten Bees up next at Villa Park.

Emery said: "I am especially happy how we finished before the break, especially in Bruges, against Coventry, against Tottenham.

"But we played a very [expletive] match against Nottingham Forest at home. So how we can react, how we can change our performance at home is very, very important.

"We need the performance. How we are building the team, how we are adapting to the players we added is very, very important.

"They are going very well and they will need more time. But, as fast as possible, we have to build our structure stronger, like we did the last year."

The head coach has also refused to blame the redevelopment of the North Stand for Villa's poor home form.

The stand is being rebuilt to take Villa Park's capacity to over 50,000 and has left one end of the stadium empty.

"No excuses. No excuses. It's a plan for the club to improve, to add more supporters this year and we must sacrifice this year," he added.

The media were barred from asking questions about Manchester City and their guilty verdict at Emery's pre-match news conference on Friday.

An independent commission found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.

The club have appealed against the verdict and claimed in a statement the commission's ruling contained "clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe".

Villa host City on 24 October so it is inevitable those questions will still be there in two weeks.

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Brentford at Villa Park (kick-off 15:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Amadou Onana and Matty Cash are "progressing very well" but remain unavailable. Modou Keba Cisse is set to rejoin the training group next week.

• Emery said he was "especially happy with how we finished before the break", with three wins - against Club Brugge, Coventry City and Tottenham - in four games immediately prior.

• On playing seven games in 21 days: "We need the performance. How we are building the team and how we are adapting is very, very important; how we can get better and build our structure offensively and defensively."

• He said some of the players who signed in the summer "are doing very well" while "some need more time" to adapt to their new club and settings. Emery added: "As fast as possible, we have to be stronger."

• He said the North Stand being shut for redevelopment is "no excuse" for his team's home performances so far this season and "it is very important" that they improve them.

• On winger Alejandro Garnacho: "He is improving and getting better. For him, the two weeks were very important. We worked here. There's still more to do and for him to add. Like his feet and power, and to adapt to us tactically."

• On opponents Brentford: "Tactically, I appreciate so, so much how they are playing. They are performing fantastic. They are always close to Europe. This year they are even better. They have started well, and better than us. It is a huge challenge."

Listen to live commentary of Aston Villa v Brentford on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2 and BBC Sounds on Saturday.

Follow all of Fridays Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Aston Villa return to Villa Park looking for their first home win of the season against Brentford.

Two defeats - by Arsenal and Nottingham Forest - contributed to a poor start but wins over Coventry City in the Carabao Cup and Tottenham in the Premier League have restored momentum.

Villa have not lost three successive home Premier League games under Unai Emery.

The last time they lost three in a row at Villa Park was January-February 2024 when Newcastle and Manchester United beat them in the league, with Chelsea also winning 3-1 in the FA Cup.

Their home form in 2026, though, has been shaky, with losses to Newcastle, Everton, Chelsea, Tottenham and Brentford coming in the second half of last season.

Fortunate wins over Brighton and Sunderland, along with a late point against Leeds, still contributed to their struggles, despite the results.

The unbeaten Bees were the only side to do the Premier League double over Villa last season, while they also knocked them out of the Carabao Cup.

Their 1-0 win at Villa Park in February came as they played more than 45 minutes with 10 men after Kevin Schade's red card.

That was their first victory at Villa Park and Keith Andrews' side will be looking to make some more history on Saturday.

Come back to this page later on Friday for all the key lines from Emery's pre-Brentford news conference.

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Just five games in, it might seem a bit early to pay much attention to the Premier League table - but it's probably more settled than you think.

If we look at the Premier League after five games last season and where teams ultimately ended up, the final table was already starting to take shape as 13 of the 20 sides finished within four places of where they sat even at this early stage (65%).

Eventual champions Arsenal were second, Sunderland were already seventh - where they finished eight months later - and two of the three sides that were relegated were already in the bottom three.

The eventual champions have been in the top two at this point in the past four campaigns, suggesting - potential punishments aside - it will be Manchester City or Arsenal that lifts the trophy.

The top end of the table overall has sometimes settled surprisingly quickly in recent years. The top eight after five games in 2024-25 finished as the top eight at the end of that season (although not in the same order), while the top six in 2019-20 and top seven in 2016-17 were also in place at this early stage.

While being top after five games has not meant much in recent seasons, being bottom certainly has.

Tottenham could well be in trouble once again as the side bottom of the Premier League after five games has been relegated in six of the past seven seasons.

Being bottom this early did not used to be such a bad omen. Between 2013-14 and 2018-19, only one of the six sides that were propping up the table after five games ended up going down - Newcastle in 2015-16 - while Crystal Palace finished as high as 11th in 2017-18.

Looking at the relegation battle more broadly, at least one of the teams in the bottom three at this stage has been relegated in the past eight seasons - so one of Tottenham, Fulham and Coventry City are very likely to be heading to the Championship in May.

The pool of contestants for this season's relegation battle may already be decided too because the three sides that ultimately went down in the past three seasons were all in the bottom six after five games, which would add Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace to the mix.

The last sides to be outside the bottom six at this point but relegated were Leeds United and Southampton in 2022-23, who were both in the top half (seventh and ninth). With their teams currently in eighth and 11th place, Hull City and Ipswich Town fans will hope that is still the case at the end of this campaign.

While the season may well have barely begun, the Premier League table is already starting to take shape.

Read the piece in full here

Aston Villa are ready to strike a loan deal for Brazil forward Endrick after the 20-year-old failed to impress Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho. (Cadena SER - in Spanish), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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A number of Premier League clubs want Manchester City to be hit with both "retrospective punishments" and sanctions for the future for their mass financial rule-breaking, sources have told BBC Sport.

An independent commission found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.

City have appealed against the verdict, while the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is poised to look at the findings to see if there may be any suggestions of potential misconduct.

However, there is said to be a consensus among a group of top-flight club executives that if City's appeal is unsuccessful, the sanctions should make reparations for the period when they broke the rules, while also limiting their powers in future.

There is also a feeling from at least four Premier League boardrooms that a "one-hit" points deduction resulting in relegation to the Championship would be an insufficient punishment given the severity of City's wrongdoing.

Read more on what rival clubs want