Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has expressed his admiration for Southampton head coach Russell Martin.
The Saints travel to Villa Park on Saturday with the aim of upsetting the hosts and moving off the bottom of the table.
It will not be easy for the South Coast side, who were trounced 5-1 by Chelsea in midweek.
But it is not impossible and Emery is very wary of the brilliance the man in the opposite dugout can provide.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Emery said: “I appreciate a lot some teams, some young coaches, how they are being brave, playing, showing different ways tactically.
“One of them is Russell Martin.
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“For us, it’s a challenge, how we can compete against this team, more or less at the beginning, knowing their capacity to keep the ball possession is one of the best in the Premier League.
“I know with my experiences, if we are not being organised in our press, we can struggle, playing against a team like Southampton.”
Villa are missing some key players ahead of the clash, but Emery is hoping they will return soon in order to boost their fortunes.
He added: “Today I don’t know exactly which players are available tomorrow.
“Some are doubts, yesterday some had pain and some are tired. We are going to train now this afternoon. Tomorrow morning, only then it will be clear who will start the match.
“Jacob Ramsey is still weeks to come back, he is progressing well. [Amadou] Onana is close to coming back, maybe today he can do something with us.
“For tomorrow, I don’t know when he will be with us. Maybe Tuesday is easier.”
