Aston Villa will surely be feeling the after-effects of a congested fixture list right about now, as Unai Emery’s men prepare for an EFL Cup tie with Crystal Palace this mid-week, away from their duties in the Premier League and Champions League.
The much-maligned competition won’t be their main priority, with Villa eyeing up another top-four finish in the top-flight alongside keeping their 100% record going on Europe’s biggest stage for as long as possible, over beating Oliver Glasner’s Eagles tomorrow night.
The Champions League will also see Villa face off against one of their former stars in Douglas Luiz when his new employers Juventus come to town right at the end of November, with the Brazilian finding life in Turin to be tricky after loving his playing days in England.
Douglas Luiz's time at Villa
Luiz was a firm fan’s favourite when on the books of Emery’s men, with his departure earlier this year hurting the Premier League club in the short term.
Villa have since licked their wounds and recovered, with Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans forming a promising partnership in the holding midfield positions in the absence of the South American, but Luiz was still a big hit with the Villa Park faithful all the same.
Luiz would notch up 204 appearances for the West Midlands club before he would up and leave for pastures new in Juventus, amassing 22 goals and 24 assists along the way as a midfield option who could roll his sleeves up and play dirty, whilst also popping up with crucial contributions going forward.
It has been a bumpy ride for the 26-year-old since his arrival to Serie A, however, with no goals or assists coming his way from nine appearances to date, as Juve boss Thiago Motta has also only given Luiz one full 90-minute run-out.
Villa will feel vindicated in selling on their star man for £42m now, away from any initial heartbreak the move caused, with one player out on loan away from Villa Park currently on course to be even better than Luiz if given a chance on his return to England.
The player with a higher ceiling than Douglas Luiz
According to football analyst Ben Mattinson, Enzo Barrenechea – who is out on loan at Valencia for the season away from Emery’s group – has a potentially “higher ceiling” than Luiz, which is high praise considering how key the Brazilian was to many Villa teams when he was still at the club.
Barrenechea will hope he can live up to this bold praise down the line, with the Argentinian midfielder impressing those at Valencia already with some top performances away from any outside hype, which included him netting his team’s opener last time out in La Liga action versus Getafe.
The brand new Valencia number five shone in that contest away from just poking home this goal, however, with six duels successfully won as a battling midfield presence.
Away from this current loan stint in Spain, Barrenechea has also proven himself in Italy – whilst Luiz currently falters in this location – hence Villa’s reasoning to splash out £6.7m to land the South American gem this summer from Juve, while Luiz headed in the opposite direction in a separate deal.
Stat – per 90 mins*
Barrenechea
Games played
36
Goals scored
1
Assists
1
Touches*
63.9
Accurate passes*
45.0 (86%)
Ball recoveries*
6.4
Total duels won*
4.9 (56%)
Looking at his numbers above when playing for Frosinone last campaign in Serie A, it’s clear that Barrenechea could go on to be a top talent for Emery’s side in the years to come, averaging an impressive 6.4 ball recoveries per game last season in league action.
To add context, Luiz playing for Motta’s men now is averaging a far lesser 2.0.
Emery will be keeping a close eye on the 23-year-old’s development in his native country, therefore, in the hope he can develop into a first-team star for his side, offering them a new Luiz in the process.
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