Emery says Barcelona are favourites ahead of Villa test

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has called Barcelona one of the favourites to win the Champions League, ahead of Villa's Matchday 4 trip to the Camp Nou.

Emery faced the media on Monday night after travelling straight to Barcelona with captain John McGinn. He said: "Barcelona is a favourite for winning this competition, I could choose five teams who might be vying for this title, one of them is Barcelona."

The fixture will be the first meeting between the two clubs since Villa's Super Cup success over two legs in January 1983. Emery said Barcelona had six points from their opening games, while Villa had nine.

Emery stressed that Villa must play to their own strengths rather than react to opponents. "So, we need to find our own personality and play with our own style, with our own qualities and skills," he said.

Villa sit 10th in the Premier League with 12 points from nine matches. Emery also praised young forward Manzambi, saying: "Manzambi is a young talent, how he is progressing, how he is adapting to us is really very good."

Emery pointed to the club's European history, recalling that Villa won the European Cup in 1982. He closed his briefing by describing the trip as a demanding test: "It's a really exciting match we'll play tomorrow."