Emery: Aston Villa's players have shown they can compete on equal footing in the top...

Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery commented on his team's defeat in the UEFA Super Cup match against PSG (1:2). "Today we played a pre-season match, but it was an official match in which we fought for the trophy. Before the match we had a plan, but after the match, considering the result and our performance, of course there will be different conclusions or consequences, because we decided to play this match with players who were ready to play, in good shape. Tactically, as well as after four weeks of training. We are trying to avoid some risks for the players and have given an extra week of rest to those who played before the last World Cup matches, such as Martinez, Watkins and Konza. Of course, these are very important players, but how we manage them is very important. We want to start the season with all the players we need for the rest of the season. I have experience and I try to use it to avoid mistakes that we might make or that might happen in other circumstances. We were also missing a few young players who were part of our work last season. A lot still needs to be done, but today the players showed that they can compete on an equal footing with the top team," the club's press service quotes Emery as saying. A video review of the match between PSG and Aston Villa is available on media.