Unai Emery was proud that his Aston Villaplayers stuck to the game plan during their 2-1 win at Fulham considering the pressure they were under after Rodrigo Muniz halved the deficit just after the hour mark.
Ollie Watkins bagged a brace, scoring either side of half-time to put Villa in control but a defensive lapse between Clement Lenglet and Emi Martinez allowed Muniz to bag his fourth goal of the season. He turned the ball past Martinez as Lenglet thought his goalkeeper was going to collect it.
But Villa hung on to a crucial three points, which lifts them back into fourth after Tottenham lost to Wolves at home. After the victory at Craven Cottage, Emery praised his players for winning back-to-back away league games for the first time this season.
“Today was a match to show it, and they showed it. They showed it with the game plan we prepared. We were defensively strong and tried to avoid their qualities.
“We had chances to score and were clinical. I even think we deserved more goals. It was a tough match when they reacted with their goal. They had chances to draw, but I think overall we were very competitive and our game plan was imposing.
“We know sometimes we can make a mistake. When it comes with a victory we can accept it. It’s important to remain confident with the way that we are. We continued with our mind clear and clever, playing with our game plan.”
