Aston Villa Manager credits his staff for their positive campaign

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has reserved praise for one of his coaching staff for his team’s impressive run this season.

Aston Villa have had a positive campaign in 2025/26 despite their poor start. They are currently sitting fourth and set to seal one spot in the Champions League and in the Europa League quarter finals. However, Villa’s boss, Unai Emery, knows he also owes his team’s success to one figure in his coaching staff whose hard work really makes the difference in John McGinn and Co.’s rise.

According to the reports in Expressandstar, the Spaniard credits his set-piece coach, Austin MacPhee, for his work.
“Austin is doing a fantastic job, and the players’ commitment to following him and working hard on every set-piece action, whether offensive or defensive. We are having a lot of meetings with the players, with Austin, and analysing deeply the work in the details. You can see everything on the field.”

Who is Austin MacPhee?

Austin MacPhee is one reputable set-piece coach in Europe today. He is currently working for Villa and the Portugal national team. The former midfielder started to gain his fame as the set-piece specialist coach when he helped Northern Ireland make their EURO debut in 2016. He was working under Michael O’Neill and focusing on the dead-ball situations.

Northern Ireland managed to topple the qualifying group, scoring 16 goals, eleven of which were from set pieces. O’Neill’s men even managed to progress to the round of 16 in EURO 2016 before losing 1-0 to Wales.

He remained part of Northern Ireland’s backroom staff till August 2021 while also working for Hearts of Midlothian and Danish side Midtjylland, which is famous for its set-piece focus.

The Scotsman joined Aston Villa in the same year as he left his post in Northern Ireland and worked simultaneously for the Scotland national team till September 2024, after he helped The Tartan Army qualify for EURO 2024.

Aston Villa and the set-piece goals

Set pieces have become crucial in modern football. It is one advantage the team could exploit to score goals, whether they are direct or indirect free kicks, corner kicks or even goal kicks if necessary.

Aston Villa has turned into one of the best teams that utilise set pieces effectively. This season they have netted 13 times from a dead-ball scenario. It is the fifth highest in the top tier. One of the recent examples of their set play training was their first goal by John McGinn against West Ham in the Premier League prior to the international break.

In the 2023/24 season, Villa even held the record for scoring the most goals from set pieces in Europe. Emery’s men registered 25 goals from dead-ball situations in all competitions.

MacPhee’s role is undeniably crucial in turning Villa into one of the set-piece specialist teams. He definitely deserves more recognition for his work, as Emery reserves his credit for Villa’s positive form this season.

Villa’s next game against Bologna could be decided from set pieces too. MacPhee’s work will continue to be in the spotlight once more goals from set plays are scored.

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