Unai Emery hailed a “fantastic” win that capped a “very good week” after Aston Villa came from behind to secure a 3-1 home win over Bournemouth.
Having gone a goal down through Dominic Solanke’s 31st-minute penalty, the hosts turned things around with Morgan Rogers equalising in first-half stoppage time and second-half efforts following from Moussa Diaby and Leon Bailey, both set up by Ollie Watkins, who is the Premier League’s leading assist maker this season on 12, to go with his 19 goals.
Villa again boosted their bid for Champions League football seven days after winning 2-0 at Arsenal, and three on from the penalty shootout triumph at Lille that took them into the Europa Conference League semi-finals.
With four league games to go, the midlands outfit are now six points clear in fourth of fifth-placed Tottenham, who have two games in hand.
Villa boss Emery said in his post-match press conference: “A very good week, very good, and today was fantastic.
“Of course, those three points were very important, and I think we can be proud of our work and proud of how we are being consistent and trying to fight with Tottenham.”
Villa can make the gap to Spurs nine points when they host Chelsea on Saturday, a day before Tottenham play their next match, at home against derby rivals Arsenal, and asked about that, Emery said: “Every match is very important.
“Here against Brentford (a 3-3 draw on April 6) we didn’t achieve three points and were disappointed. We used that match to analyse with the players, and I think the reaction of the players was fantastic at Arsenal, and was fantastic as well today.
“I think again the players are showing us their commitment to continue being demanding, to try to keep consistency at the end of the season.”
Emery was also asked about being linked with Bayern Munich, to which the Spaniard replied: “I am focused here, 100 per cent.”
Bournemouth stayed 13th, on 42 points with five games remaining.
The Cherries’ record Premier League points tally for a season is the 46 accrued when finishing ninth under Eddie Howe in 2016-17.
And boss Andoni Iraola said after the Villa game: “I think we have a clear goal right now and that is to beat the points record of Bournemouth.
“I think we can do it, but it’s not going to be easy because we have very difficult games. We play away again against Wolves, then we have Brighton, Arsenal away (also Brentford at home and Chelsea away) – games where if we want to get the points we want, we are going to have to have a very, very good performance. That is what we are looking for.
“Today we couldn’t do it, especially second half, and we need to improve if we want to get that.”