New Aston Villa striker Jhon Duran is now pushing Unai Emery to let him make his debut at home to Leicester City. The forward has joined the Premier League club from Chicago Fire.
That is according to Birmingham Live, which reports Duran does not want to wait to make his Aston Villa debut. Instead, he wants Emery to utilise his talents at the first chance with Leicester’s visit. It gives him until February 4 to get up to speed with the Spaniard’s system.
Aston Villa completed an £18m deal for Duran on Monday with Emery spending an upfront £15m plus £3m in add-ons. The 19-year-old joins after 28 appearances at Chicago Fire that returned eight goals. He also laid on six assists in all competitions with the MLS franchise.
Duran’s performances at Soldier Field also led to his senior Colombia debut in September. The forward has since reached three caps but is yet to score and did not make their World Cup squad. All three of his appearances for Los Cafeteros have also been from their bench.
Emery and Aston Villa have bet on the striker’s potential after starting 15 games at Chicago Fire, though. He opened 14 MLS matches and scored five of his eight goals in his final five games of 2022. Boss Ezra Hendrickson only made Duran a consistent starter from August.
Duran is already eying his Aston Villa debut after his transfer from Chicago Fire
Duran is now already eying his Aston Villa debut after sealing a transfer from Chicago Fire to Villa Park. But he has to wait until, at least, the visit of Leicester on February 4 with the Villans already out of the FA Cup. Emery’s squad lost 2-1 to Stevenage in the third round.
League Two side Stevenage will now visit Championship club Stoke City this Sunday in the FA Cup fourth round. Aston Villa have now lost in the third round every year since 2016.
Duran will hope he can help Emery continue Aston Villa’s strong run in the Premier League since his appointment. The Spaniard, who has sold striker Danny Ings to West Ham United for up to £15m, has won five and drawn in one of his seven top-flight fixtures at the helm.
Emery is unlikely to usher Duran into a prominent starting role yet, though. While Chicago Fire coach Hendrickson believes the teenager ‘can be a really, really special player’, he will serve as Ollie Watkins’ backup. But Duran is certain to get his chances from Emery’s bench.
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