Emery Aims for Redemption Against Former Club Arsenal
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery, who experienced a challenging 18-month tenure at Arsenal that concluded in 2019, faces his former club on Tuesday. Can he secure a victory this time?
BBC Sport football expert Chris Sutton expressed his desire for Emery to triumph at the Emirates Stadium, stating, "After the abuse he received from Arsenal fans, I would love nothing more than for Emery to return and win. He absolutely did not deserve that treatment. Some fans should reflect on their behavior towards him. I hope Villa goes there and delivers a decisive victory, just for that reason."
Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches this season, competing against AI, BBC Sport readers, and various guests. In week 19, which includes the final games of 2025 on December 30 and the first matches of 2026 on New Year's Day, he goes head-to-head with singer-songwriter Tom A Smith, a Sunderland supporter.
Smith's latest EP, "Say What You Want," has recently been released and reached number 14 on the UK record store charts at the end of November.
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Smith, hailing from Houghton-le-Spring near Sunderland, is a lifelong Black Cats fan who is thrilled to see his team perform well this season. "It's been amazing," he told BBC Sport. "It's a fantastic time to be a Sunderland fan and to be from Sunderland. Last season, I felt excitement before every game, which had been absent for a long time. The atmosphere in the city is electric, and the team's success is positively impacting everyone. People are in great spirits, and everywhere is thriving."
Sunderland has been playing Smith's songs at the Stadium of Light since their Championship days, and he expressed that hearing them during matches is a wonderful experience. "I often hear my songs played on match days, which is incredible. A couple of years ago, when we lost, they would play my songs at the end, but thankfully, they now play them when we win too!"
Chris Sutton and Tom A Smith were speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.
The AI predictions were generated using Microsoft Copilot Chat, which was prompted to 'predict this week's Premier League scores.'