Aston Villa’s impressive run of form hit a snag on Wednesday night as they played out a stale goalless draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Wednesday night.
Despite enjoying the lion’s share of possession, Villa struggled to create clear-cut opportunities against Oliver Glasner’s well-organised defense.
Ollie Watkins saw a header cleared off the line, while Leon Bailey struck the post in the dying minutes, but the breakthrough never came.
The result keeps Villa level on points with Manchester City in third place, trailing leaders Arsenal by five points.
For Palace, the point is a welcome boost following a difficult run of results. The Eagles handed a full debut to Brennan Johnson, who showed glimpses of quality on the counter-attack.
While Emery will be disappointed with the dropped points, he praised his team’s defensive solidity. Villa now turn their attention to the FA Cup before a pivotal league clash.