The visitors held on despite Newcastle United increasing the pressure after the interval, extending their unbeaten run on Tyneside to five matches. Emery was delighted with the commitment his players showed in a difficult away fixture.
“We focused this match strong in our meetings before the game. This morning, just before the match as well, we were, everybody, aware about how important this match was,” he said.
“After our poor start, we have to try to keep balance in the table. We drew last week, of course, we accepted it against Brentford. We were not winning at home, we won on Wednesday in Champions League, very good victory, but again, in Premier League as a priority for the season, this competition, because through it we must achieve our objectives.”
Manzambi broke the deadlock in the 36th minute, arriving to meet João Gomes' delivery from the right with a powerful header. Newcastle had opportunities to respond, particularly in the second half, but lacked the precision to turn their improved performance into an equaliser.
Emery praised the defensive work that protected Villa's lead, as well as goalkeeper Zion Suzuki's contribution when Newcastle threatened from crosses and set-pieces.
“We defended fantastic in the first half, the second half. We scored one goal, we had some transitions as well to score the second goal, the first half, the second half,” he said.
“We needed, as well, Zion. Zion, he did a fantastic save, he did as well a lot of going to catch the ball when they were crossing. I think he did a fantastic job.”
Newcastle head coach Matthias Jaissle felt his side had shown a response after conceding but accepted that their attacking decisions needed to improve.
“Second 45 minutes, really aggressive from our lads. We won the duels, unfortunately we were not smart enough in the final decision-making in the opposition box so that is something we need to work on,” he said.
“We need to threaten the opposition much more when we have the ball in the final third. We had the occasions but in the end, the lucky punch was missing.”
Jaissle also pointed to the challenge of keeping a young squad emotionally consistent throughout a match. He said the players needed to reset more quickly after setbacks and maintain their belief in the approach they had prepared.
Aston Villa's win gives Emery a personal landmark while providing encouragement as the club continues to develop its squad. The manager was already looking ahead, with further fixtures in Europe and domestic competition coming quickly.
“Of course, every competition, we must try to take those competitions, focusing strongly to try to build the team and to get our objectives,” Emery said.