Emery lauds Villa's 'never give up' attitude after draw at Arsenal

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery hailed Aston Villa's "never give up" mentality after their fighting draw against Arsenal in the Premier League on Saturday.

Youri Tielemans and Ollie Watkins scored in the space of eight second-half minutes as Villa came back from two goals down to hold title-chasing Arsenal 2-2 at the Emirates Stadium.

Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz had given the Gunners a 2-0 lead, but Villa handed Mikel Arteta's side a huge blow as they now trail leaders Liverpool by six points, having played a game more.

And after their hard-earned point in London, Villa boss Emery praised his players for their brilliant second-half display.

"It was fantastic. It was brilliant how the players reacted after the two goals," Emery told Sky Sports.

"In our mentality, we never give up and today, we never gave up and we tried to score one goal. The mentality we showed is the mentality we want.

Emery's players have now won 13 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season with only Manchester City (14) and Liverpool (14) having recovered more.

It was also the first time since 2013 that Villa had avoided a defeat after trailing by two goals or more in the Premier League, ending a run of 52 straight defeats.

Emery also hinted that he will be looking into the transfer market to equip his side for the second half of the season.

We draw at the Emirates after a big second half #ARSAVL pic.twitter.com/ZcVQPiTeci

— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) January 18, 2025

"I want to build a team changing some small players in the squad and trying to use this transfer window to get stronger for the second part of the season," he said.

Arsenal came into the game on the back of a 11-game unbeaten run in the league and though Villa failed to snap that run, they ran them close every inch of the way.

"Arsenal are very powerful at home. This is the level that we want to be close to, but we still have work to do as they're very strong in their way. To compete like we did is the only way to get something here," Emery said.

"They were pushing and creating some chances, but even with that we have another."

Villa will now turn their focus to Champions League as they face Monaco on Tuesday.

"Now we are going to enjoy Champions League and of course to compete," he said.

His side have collected 13 points from six matches in Europe this season and trail table toppers Liverpool by five points.