Villa have just sent transfer statement to rivals as Emery fixes big issue

The £50m capture of Amadou Onana is a serious statement of intent from Aston Villa, who have wasted no time improving Unai Emery’s squad this summer.

Villa have also signed Lewis Dobbin from Everton for £9m, Enzo Barrenechea and Samuel Iling-Junior for £18.6m combined, Ross Barkley for £5m and Ian Maatsen for £37.5m, while Jaden Philogene is poised to return from Hull City for around £13m after their 30 per cent sell-on clause comes into play having matched Ipswich Town’s £18m offer earlier this week. Of course, the loss of Douglas Luiz was far from ideal, but it was a transfer that Villa had to sanction to remain compliant with the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules.

Villa planned for his exit 18 months ago with the signing of Youri Tielemans on a free, before Barkley joined for a small fee from Luton Town. Now, the big-money arrival of Onana gives Emery even more depth and quality in midfield. The options he has at his disposal are ridiculous.

READ | Explained: Why Aston Villa want Jaden Philogene after Hull transfer amid Moussa Diaby decision

READ | Gary Neville delivers brutal Ollie Watkins Euro 2024 final snub as he sends England instruction

Boubacar Kamara is making strong progress from an ACL injury, but isn’t expected to feature at least for the first few months of next season, while Barrenechea is a deputy in that holding role having only played one season of senior football last season at Frosinone on loan from Juventus. Barkley, Tielemans and John McGinn can all play in a double pivot, plus Onana, who is a completely different profile of player.

Onana towers over his opponents at 6′ 4″ and invariably wins the majority of his aerial duels. Last season, of all Premier League players, Onana recorded the fourth highest aerial duel success rate of 74.3 per cent. It was the most of all midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues.

Last term, Villa struggled to defend set-pieces and also recorded the second-worst aerial duel success rate of all Premier League teams last season, meaning Emery had to add height and profile to his squad.

Onana recorded a pass completion of 84 per cent and registered 18 key passes over the 30 league appearances he made. Of the 871 passes he completed last season, 107 of them were classed as progressive passes.

What do you make of the move? Tell us in the comments section

Click here to join our Villa WhatsApp Community and get the latest news sent straight to your phone