Aston Villa say they intend to begin legal action against football pundit Jamie Carragher, following comments the club described as “unacceptable insults” directed at Villa and their supporters.

In a statement posted on social media on Friday and signed by chairman Nassef Sawiris, Villa accused Carragher of insulting the Premier League club and its fans. The club said it would “not allow anyone to stop our ascension in English and European football”.

The dispute followed an appearance by Carragher on the Stick to Football podcast, where he discussed the possibility of Aston Villa manager Unai Emery being interested in taking over as Manchester United head coach.

Manchester United manager Michael Carrick's position is under pressure after what was described as a dismal start to the campaign. Carragher argued that Emery could be attracted by the opportunity to manage United, saying: “Surely he would want that opportunity to manage a giant again.”

He also referred to what he called a hierarchy in football. “There is a chain in football, whether you like it or not,” Carragher said, citing Cristiano Ronaldo's move from Manchester United to Real Madrid as an example.

Carragher continued: “And there will be teams below Aston Villa, and they'll take their players or manager, so shut the [expletive] up Aston Villa fans. Aston Villa will never be Manchester United.”

The former Liverpool player works as a pundit for Sky Sports and US broadcaster CBS. He later responded on social media to the criticism from Villa supporters, saying his response had been intended as a joke after fans had challenged his suggestion that Emery might want the Manchester United role.

“It was a joke after the stick Villa fans have given me over saying Emery may fancy joining Man Utd,” Carragher said. He added that clips of his previous comments would show that he had praised Emery and Villa for years, and that he had said he was pleased the club won the 2026 Europa League in Istanbul.