With two games left, Villa and seventh-place Tottenham are tied on points.
Unai Emery, the manager of Aston Villa, is "optimistic" that his team will succeed in its bid to play in Europe next season.
With a 2-1 victory over Tottenham last week, Villa moved to within one point of Brighton, who hold the final Europa League spot, and equal with the Londoners, who are currently seventh in the Europa Conference League play-off position.
"After the match against Tottenham, I am optimistic," Emery said in a press conference before his team's Saturday meeting at Liverpool. Even if we have no control over it, we nevertheless intend to play and succeed.
With a victory over struggling Tottenham, Villa earned their 14th Premier League victory in 23 games since Emery took over as manager last October as a response to previous back-to-back league losses.
The former Arsenal manager has been nominated for Premier League manager of the year because of that run.
Emery's team has two games left; on the final day, they host Brighton at home. Thanks to the Spaniard's metamorphosis, a top-seven finish now seems very likely.
I adore Europe," Emery declared. "I really want to play Europe because after 15 years, spending a lot of time playing wonderful matches, amazing performances, and amazing matches, I am here to try to achieve the same with Aston Villa."
The 51-year-old is the most successful manager in the Europa League, having won the tournament three times with Sevilla and once with Villarreal. He also finished as Arsenal's manager when they finished second to Chelsea in the 2019 final.
"My focus, my passion, is to play here feeling strong emotions together, firstly in the Premier League, secondly, trying to be close to trophies, and then playing in Europe," Emery added.
"That serves as my daily inspiration. It's the reason we need to be attentive, involve others around us, and consider our options in life while thinking about football.
Philippe Coutinho, a midfielder for Villa, has been sidelined for the team's final two games after suffering an injury during pre-Tottenham training, according to Emery.
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