Unai Emery is confident the changes he made to Aston Villa's line-up were not the reason for the underwhelming performance in a 2-1 loss to Tottenham on Sunday.

Villa boss Emery opted to make seven changes to the side that were beaten 1-0 by Nottingham Forest in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final tie last time out.

With the second leg taking place this coming Thursday, Emery clearly felt it was important to freshen up his side at Villa Park, and consequently, a disjointed showing from the hosts saw them trail to goals from Conor Gallagher and Richarlison after just 25 minutes.

Emiliano Buendia grabbed a last-gasp consolation, but it was too little, too late for Villa by then.

Asked by TNT Sports about the changes, Emery said: "Playing with [the] eleven players we have in the squad, [or] choosing another eleven, we could have lost the match we lost with different players.

"We didn't deserve more. Tottenham played a very good match and scored two quick goals, then dominated the first half more than we planned. 

"But we reacted in the second half, we were pushing more, we were playing better than the first half. 

"We tried to react, scoring one goal, but we only achieved this at the end of the match. We must accept this defeat."

Emi Buendía gets one back in stoppage time, but it's defeat at Villa Park. pic.twitter.com/cuYXmTSLoY

— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) May 3, 2026

Villa did not register a shot on target until Buendia's 96th-minute header, while they have lost three consecutive games in all competitions for the first time since November 2024 (a run of four).

Moreover, only Burnley (13) and West Ham (10) have conceded more goals in the first 15 minutes of Premier League games this season than Aston Villa (eight), with Gallagher's opener scored in the 12th minute.

However, Emery was at pains to stress how consistent Villa – who are still fifth and in pole position to qualify for the Champions League – have been this season.

"We were playing a Premier League match, 35 games [played now], and, of course, a lot of things we did before well, now [that is the reason we have] the advantage we have, and playing against Tottenham, I expected in our worst match this result, because I know Tottenham have very good players like they showed against us. 

"And we were not playing in our best performance. But, overall, in 35 matches we are still being in front, we are still with 58 points because we did things before better than we did. 

"This is the consistency we are always trying to get in each match, especially in a long season like we are doing. 

"Now we are going to prepare for this special match [Europa League semi-final second leg]. I think we must be motivated, and we must prepare as good as possible, and enjoy the process."