Aston Villa part ways with Emery's long-serving assistant Ayestaran after Europa League triumph

Aston Villa have announced the departure of two senior members of Unai Emery’s coaching staff, with assistant coach Pako Ayestaran and Individual Performance Coach Antonio Rodriguez Saravia both leaving the club after three years of service.

The pair were part of Emery’s backroom team from the moment he was appointed in October 2022 and were integral to a period that produced Villa’s best season in decades — a fourth-place Premier League finish and a Europa League title, the club’s first major trophy in 30 years.

In a statement, Villa said: “Both Pako and Rodri will always remain hugely popular at Aston Villa and everyone at the club would like to thank them for their service as well as wishing them all the very best for the future.”

Ayestaran is a figure with deep roots in elite football. He served as Rafa Benítez’s assistant at Liverpool and was part of the coaching staff during the club’s iconic 2005 Champions League triumph in Istanbul. He later worked alongside Emery at Valencia, and although the pair went their separate ways for nearly a decade, they reunited at Villa Park in 2022.

Villa have moved quickly to address the vacancy, confirming that José María Sanz will join as an assistant coach, subject to visa approval. Sanz brings more than 20 years of coaching experience, having worked at Valencia and Osasuna in Spain as well as Sheffield United in England.

The changes come as Villa prepare for another Champions League campaign, having reached the quarter-finals in the 2024-25 season under Emery. The club are also managing significant interest in midfielder Morgan Rogers, on whom they have placed a reported £130 million valuation — a figure that would make any deal the most expensive transfer in British football history — amid reported interest from Arsenal.

Off the pitch, Villa Park’s North Stand is undergoing a major redevelopment that will see it closed for the entirety of next season. Once complete, the ground’s overall capacity is set to exceed 50,000.