What can we say about Aston Villa’s start to the Premier League season? Under the leadership of Unai Emery who has regained the respect he deserves across the Channel, the Villans are a small point behind leader Arsenal and are in a deserved third place in the standings. Conceding a frustrating draw against Sheffield United this Friday (1-1), the Birmingham-based club could even have started Boxing Day at the top of the Premier League without this slight setback. For the holidays, the residents of Villa Park will face Manchester United at Old Trafford this Tuesday (9 p.m.) before ending the year with a seemingly easy reception against Burnley on Saturday.
In short, the first part of this 2023-2024 vintage will have been more than successful for the teammates of a very prolific Ollie Watkins (9 goals in 18 games) and an imperial Boubacar Kamara in the midfield. It must be said, the management of Aston Villa, led by Monchi, will have put Unai Emery in the best conditions to succeed by achieving a high-quality summer transfer window. By bringing in Moussa Diaby and Pau Torres, the Villans pulled out all the stops and the recruitment of these two sure values is, for the moment, bearing fruit. In addition to this, the Birmingham board managed to attract Youri Tielemans for free. A real added value for the middle of the third PL which is imposing this season.
Several players in the hot seat as Villa want to recruit this winter
Besides that, Clément Lenglet came on loan from FC Barcelona while Nicolo Zaniolo also set down his bags on the other side of the Channel. While the Italian has 2 goals in 19 appearances, the French defender is in trouble with Villa. With only six appearances in the purple and blue jersey, the former Sevilla FC player is nevertheless praised by his coach Unai Emery: “I’m very happy with him,” Emery said when asked about Lenglet’s future. “His commitment in every training session is incredible. He is a very good professional and always ready to play.» A paradox as the 28-year-old defender does not seem to be a long-term player in England. Tracked by OL, the player trained in Nancy is also followed by AC Milan according to the Birmingham Mail which confirms that its future is uncertain in the city of a thousand professions.
According to the media from across the Channel, the Frenchman is not the only one to be on the razor’s edge in Birmingham. Indeed, offers for Leander Dendoncker will be listened to while a loan is desired for young midfielder Tim Iroegbunam (20 years old). In terms of arrivals, several names are mentioned to strengthen the attack such as Geny Catamo from Sporting and Crysencio Summerville from Leeds. A right defender is also in demand as the club wants to bring back fresh flesh with this promising third place in the Premier League and to maintain the hopes of coronation in the Conference League. One thing is certain, the winter will be very hot with Aston Villa as Unaï Emery confided in recent days: “the club owners are very ambitious and very enthusiastic. They appreciate what we do. We have to be smart. We have very good players in the team and we have to manage some changes and try to improve some positions. We are going to be really demanding because it is not easy to change something and improve. We have the opportunity to do something. The owners are open to signing certain players if we are convinced.»
