Soccer
Are Aston Villa being underestimated again?
Watch Premier League live with Fubo Sports on DAZN
The UEFA Super Cup is always an interesting match-up as the winners of the Champions League and the Europa League do battle.
This year's affair saw Luis Enrique's back-to-back European champions PSG take on the Europa League specialist Unai Emery, in charge of Aston Villa.
PSG won 2-1 to win their second consecutive Super Cup, but a slightly depleted Villa side caused them all sorts of problems.
With the start of the Premier League season quickly approaching, is Emery's side being underestimated once again?
Big-money departures at Aston Villa
Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way first: Villa have lost some of their most important players.
Morgan Rogers left for a British-record fee to join Chelsea, whilst Manchester United triggered Youri Tielemans' £35m release clause to get one of the bargains of the summer.
Lucas Digne has also left the club, joining the European champions PSG.
It could get worse as there is growing noise surrounding Arsenal's interest in Ezri Konsa.
@ChelseaFC
New blood could boost Unai Emery
With key players out the door, Villa have looked to bring in reinforcements.
Johan Manzambi joins from Freiburg off the back of a standout World Cup campaign with Switzerland.
João Gomes comes in from relegated Wolves, filling in for the injured Amadou Onana.
Alejandro Garnacho's arrival on loan from Chelsea has split opinion, but if Emery can get the Argentinian firing, he could become a useful asset.
Villa also have internal options to utilise. Young attackers Brian Madjo and George Hemmings both started the Super Cup against PSG.
The former, who joined Villa in January, scored their only goal and looked a real threat throughout the match.
Plenty for Emery to consider ahead of Villa's Premier League opener.
Getty
The Emery factor
Heading into every season, it feels like there is a consensus that Aston Villa won't hit the heights they did the season prior, but it very rarely plays out that way.
This is the Villans' fourth successive season competing in Europe, with two of them in the Champions League and a Europa League trophy in that run.
Throughout Emery's time at the club, whatever problems have arisen, the Spaniard has fixed them.
He knows his squad like the back of his hand and consistently gets the most out of them, a trait only the top managers have.
Write off Villa and Emery at your peril. Previous years tell us it normally doesn't go well.
ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images
How to watch the Premier League in Canada
Soccer fans in Canada can watch every Premier League match during the 2026-27 season on DAZN.
With Fubo Sports on DAZN, Canadians can catch Premier League and Serie A action. Additionally, DAZN is the home of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Bundesliga, and more.
For pricing information and to sign up to watch, click here.
