Why Unai Emery must reconsider January stance on ‘fantastic’ Aston Villa star
After seeing him play against Arsenal, Unai Emery, the manager of Aston Villa, might reconsider selling Leander Dendoncker in January.
For an excessively optimistic season, Aston Villa is presently occupying third position in the Premier League.
Even though he has played 24 games this season, Unai Emery has generally not changed his starting lineup much.
Having said that, as the season progresses and the number of fixtures increases, rotation will become increasingly important.
The January transfer window is fast approaching and with that, the rumour mill is in full swing.
This has seen star names like Douglas Luiz linked with elite moves away from B6. On top of this, squad players with a lack of minutes have been told they can leave by Emery.
What has been said about Leander Dendoncker?
Leander Dendoncker is one name among them.
David Ornstein has suggested that the Villans may try to “shift” him during the winter window. Fans won’t be too surprised by this given how little time the Belgian has had on the field this season.
He has only appeared in five Premier League games thus far this season, with one in the League Cup and four in the Europa Conference League. That’s insufficient for a guy who signed for around £13 million.
Along with Boubacar Kamara, the former Anderlecht player had to fight for a spot in the base of the midfield. It is by no means a simple feat, considering the Frenchman’s performance both this season and last.
Having said that, it will be advantageous to have him on file in B6, even though moving away might make sense for everyone.
Why Unai Emery should keep him
It is imperative to acknowledge that Dendoncker is not a player that will wow you with their skill. He’s going to show up and do the duty assigned to him.
Just think back to Newcastle’s 3-0 thumping at Villa Park at the close of the previous campaign. The Belgian was outstanding and helped lead to a decisive victory.
Following this performance, his manager told the Birmingham Mail, “He’s had a lot of issues in the past. He hasn’t played much, so this was his chance. He sets a good example for other players by showing them that you have to be prepared to play and contribute skills. Dendoncker was very amazing.
This was last season and Villa have come a long way in a short space of time since that game. That may be the case but, this weekend gone, Dendoncker came on in place of Kamara and played a role as Villa secured three points against Arsenal.
Despite having just ten touches of the ball, he was nevertheless able to have an impact on defence, according to SofaScore. He accomplished his goal of two tackles and two clearances in his first game. Additionally, he prevailed in 75% of his duels, which made it tough for Arsenal to mount strong attacks.
Squad depth will be required because the Villans still have a lot of games left in the season and are expected to perform well. Even if the majority of supporters might not be the biggest admirers, Dendoncker can perform well and gives the team more stability.
Emery could do far worse for his team during the January transfer window than to keep the Belgian in his lineup.
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