No goals but Emery knows Villa's forwards need time

WHAT HAPPENED
Aston Villa have failed to score in their opening three Premier League fixtures this season and have managed just one shot on target. Manager Unai Emery heads into Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Club Brugge looking to spark his side’s attack after a summer of substantial change.

Emery has reshaped the forward line following the departures of several key attackers and has handed starts to new signing Nicolas Jackson in the last two matches. Despite the lack of goals so far, Emery has indicated his trust in Jackson, who joins a reconfigured attacking group.

KEY CONTEXT
- Villa took five league games to find the net at the start of last season but ultimately won the Europa League in Istanbul.
- Since that Europa League-winning starting XI, six players who started that final have left Villa Park.
- Nicolas Jackson arrived as a club-record £65m signing to replace Ollie Watkins, who moved to Al-Hilal for £51m and left as Villa’s record scorer in the Premier League with 91 goals.
- Other summer changes include the arrivals of Ibrahim Mbaye (signed for £47m from Paris St-Germain on deadline day) and Alejandro Garnacho (on loan from Chelsea) to help cover the exits of Morgan Rogers (sold to Chelsea for £117m) and others.
- Emery has previously coached Jackson and started him in Villa’s recent matches.

WHY IT MATTERS
Villa’s attack has been materially reworked: the club lost a large share of its previous goal contributors and creative providers. Last season Watkins and Morgan Rogers accounted for nearly half of Villa’s Premier League goals between them, while Rogers and Lucas Digne combined for 12 assists (Youri Tielemans added four and Watkins three) — all four of those players have since departed. Replacing that output is central to Villa’s prospects domestically and in Europe, so how quickly the new front line adapts will influence results in both competitions.

WHAT TO WATCH NEXT
- Whether Nicolas Jackson can translate Emery’s confidence into goals for Villa in the coming matches, starting with the Champions League fixture at Club Brugge.
- How quickly Ibrahim Mbaye and Alejandro Garnacho can establish themselves as regular supply lines after significant summer moves.
- Which attacking combinations Emery selects and whether younger options such as George Hemmings (19), whom Emery called "clearly a Premier League player," will earn more opportunities.
- The short-term impact on Villa’s results as the team seeks to replace the goals and assists lost through the summer departures.

KEY FACTS
- Villa have no goals from their first three Premier League games and only one shot on target.
- Nicolas Jackson was signed for a reported club-record £65m and has started Villa’s last two matches.
- Ollie Watkins left for Al-Hilal for £51m and finished with 91 Premier League goals for Villa.
- Ibrahim Mbaye joined from Paris St-Germain for a reported £47m; Alejandro Garnacho is on loan from Chelsea.
- Watkins and Morgan Rogers together accounted for 46% of Villa’s Premier League goals last season; Rogers and Lucas Digne contributed 12 assists between them.