Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has given his thoughts on the progress of pre-season preparations as the team's tour of the United States draws to a close.

Emery's focus at this stage isn't on wins and losses, but rather on establishing a complete squad structure and match rhythm for the new season. Aston Villa began pre-season training in early July, focusing primarily on youth players. Subsequently, most of the first-team players returned from international duty, and preparations officially began.

After playing against Walsall and Hansa Rostock, the team embarked on a US tour, having already played against Eintracht Frankfurt and St. Louis City, among other clubs. The team is about to face the final match of this overseas tour in Nashville.

In a recent interview, Emery said: "At the beginning we mainly trained with young players. This is our responsibility to the youth players. We also hope that they will understand our working methods and work hard to reach the level we require."

"The second phase will focus on physical recovery and squad structure building, with the rotation and combination of each position being fine-tuned through matches. Although the squad may undergo further adjustments before the transfer window closes, the overall structure is now basically complete."

Regarding the pre-season goals, Emery stressed that results are not the top priority: "Our goal now is not to win, but to understand the players' condition through actual combat and to polish the overall structure we hope to achieve in the new season."

Speaking about the upcoming match against Nashville, Emery said: "We know they are playing at home and will give their all, which will be a good test for us. Every opponent wants to prove themselves when they play against us, and we will also give our all while continuing to think about how to improve the squad."