Unai Emery has made the message plain: Aston Villa's Premier League finish matters most right now. Villa are fifth, which is the final Champions League spot, and they still have a live route there through the league. The Europa League final is also on the horizon, but Emery is not treating that as the main path.

Why the league comes first

Emery said, "The priority to achieve our objective is through the league. In the league, we are not performing the last matches like we were." That is the clearest reading of where Villa stand. They beat Nottingham Forest 4-1 on aggregate in the semi-final, and their final is on 20 May in Istanbul against Freiburg, but the manager's point is that fifth place is still there to be taken.

Villa have 58 points from 35 matches. Their last five league results are L-L-W-D-W, which matches Emery's concern about recent form, and it is why Sunday away to Burnley feels so important. Burnley are 19th with 20 points and have lost their last five league games, so this is the kind of fixture Villa need to handle if they are serious about staying in the Champions League places.

Emery put it simply: "Burnley on Sunday is a huge opportunity. A huge opportunity to try to get the fifth position definitely, or of course, waiting for the next two matches against Liverpool and Manchester City."

What is still left for Villa

The remaining run is not friendly. Villa's final three league matches are away to Burnley, home to Liverpool, and away to Manchester City. Liverpool are fourth on 58 points and Manchester City are third on 58 points, so if Villa leave points behind at Turf Moor, the pressure only increases before two much harder games.

That is why Emery's league-first stance makes sense. He is not dismissing the final, but he is treating the table as the cleaner route to Champions League qualification. With fifth place still in reach and three league fixtures left, the Burnley game is the one that can keep Villa on course before the final against Freiburg ever arrives.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →