The marathon international break has arrived, which means now is an ideal time to take stock of how Aston Villa, and specifically their new signings, have started the season.
If you count the UEFA Super Cup against PSG, Villa have played eight competitive games so far this term. None of Villa’s ten summer recruits have played in every game, although some have already established themselves as key players since joining.
Here is a power ranking of how well, or not so well Villa’s additions have begun their career with the club:
10. Alejandro Garnacho
Garnacho was undoubtedly Villa’s most questionable signing of the transfer window, and so far it is not looking good for the 22-year-old.
He has played around 30 total minutes so far, none of which came in the last four games, and has shown very little to get fans excited in his brief appearances.
For all Unai Emery’s insistence they are being patient with Garnacho and trying to bring him along slowly, this looks to be rapidly turning into a situation akin to Harvey Elliott last year, who was frozen out so Villa did not trigger the conditional obligation to buy within his loan deal.
9. Leon Goretzka
It says something that despite not playing a single minute for his new team, Goretzka is ahead of Garnacho. Admittedly, that is more due to the risk Villa have taken with Garnacho and the potential circus they have created due to the buy obligation.
Goretzka unfortunately picked up a knee injury before he could make his debut and will be out until after the international break. When he does return, the experienced German should bring plenty to the table, but we are yet to see it.
8. Taylor Harwood-Bellis
Are you sensing a theme at the bottom end of this list? Harwood-Bellis has only made one appearance for the club, making it difficult to evaluate him or rank him higher.
He started Villa’s 3-1 Carabao Cup win over Coventry and played very well, producing an accomplished defensive performance and also showing off his famous passing ability. It was an encouraging sign of what could be on the horizon.
It was only one game though, against a newly promoted Premier League team who were not playing their best starting 11. Harwood-Bellis has a lot more to prove yet, especially to Emery if he is going to oust Victor Lindelof or Tyrone Mings from the lineup.
7. Matteo Ruggeri
Ruggeri has made four total appearances for Villa, starting the last two games after Ian Maatsen picked up an injury which is expected to keep him out for at least another month.
Thrust into a prominent role, Ruggeri struggled in the first half against Spurs as Savio gave him a tough time, but settled in and improved as the game went on. He was also solid in the Coventry cup tie.
There is more to come from Ruggeri, but so far he looks more than capable of cutting it at this level. Once he gets more comfortable in the league and in Emery’s system, he should provide strong competition for Maatsen throughout the season.
6. Aaron Wan-Bissaka
The performances of Wan-Bissaka have been up and down, as his defensive abilities – namely his incredible skill for tackling from any angle – have been on display, but he also looks like his head is spinning at times as he attempts to get to grips with Emery’s demands.
His defending has not been flawless in terms of positioning, and his decision-making with and without the ball has left something to be desired so far.
It will take a while for him to catch up to Matty Cash mentally and be able to truly contest the right-back position. He did get the start against Spurs, but Cash was just coming back from a minor injury and replaced Wan-Bissaka at half time after he struggled a bit in the first 45 minutes.
It is hard to know what to make of Wan-Bissaka so far. It is a case of ‘wait and see’ on him.
5. Ibrahim Mbaye
Mbaye has only made one start so far, but it was a memorable one as he showed off his prodigious talent versus Coventry, providing a direct one-on-one threat from the right wing and registering his first assist for the club.
It will be interesting to see how he eventually slots in, as surely Emery wants to get Mbaye in the starting lineup regularly, but his natural position is on the right, where John McGinn is holding it down.
However Emery decides to use Mbaye, there has been plenty for Villa fans to get excited about from his limited minutes so far. His pace and dynamism is a breath of fresh air.
4. Joao Gomes
Gomes got off to a terrible start as he was sent off in his league debut. I considered penalizing him for his performance that day, which effectively killed any chance Villa had of getting something from the game, and for missing the next three Premier League games as a result.
However, he bounced back with a great game in his first ever Champions League appearance as a key part of the 3-2 win over Club Brugge in which he provided an assist, and also put in a real shift against Spurs, recovering from a slow start to play an important role in the victory.
It is clear Gomes is still improving as a player. Hopefully Emery can continue to squeeze more out of him, and also tame some of his wild tendencies.
3. Johan Manzambi
He may have only started one game, but Manzambi’s display against Tottenham alone was worth placing him high in these rankings.
The 20-year-old scored and assisted on his debut and grew in confidence as the game went on. His ability to travel with the ball will be vital to Villa this season, and there were early signs of an exciting partnership with Nicolas Jackson.
It speaks volumes that Emery was willing to throw him into the starting lineup for a big game after he had no preseason and only a couple of weeks training with his new teammates. Villa’s manager knows how big Manzambi will be for him this season, and Saturday was a great start.
2. Nicolas Jackson
Jackson’s goal against Spurs – his first in the Premier League for Villa – was just reward for an excellent all-around performance. His work rate, his link-up play, his on-ball quality and his creative finishing were all on show.
That was his second goal for the club in five starts, and while his game is rough around the edges, it is effective and he has led the line for Villa well so far. The only blemish is probably the Nottingham Forest game where he had to be subbed off at half-time as Emery was worried he would get sent off.
He deserves credit for hitting the ground running with no ramp-up period, as he did not get the luxury of being eased in as others have. Jackson is off to a good start with the club and will only get better.
1. Zion Suzuki
It is difficult to pick any holes in Suzuki’s play so far.
For as good as everyone thought his passing would be, it has been even better than advertised and looks like it will be a real weapon for Villa. He has not really put a foot wrong in the more traditional goalkeeping duties either.
Suzuki stepped in to replace Emi Martinez seamlessly, almost single-handedly kept them in the Spurs game in the first-half, and while he has conceded goals, it would have been very difficult to do anything about them. Villa look to have hit a home run with their new goalkeeper signing.
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