Aston Villa were one of the surprise packages of the 2023/24 Premier League campaign after claiming a Champions League place.
By Sam McGuire
They’ll have lost the element of surprise this time around, clubs will see them as the real deal, but they’re still going to be a contender for another top-four finish after making a number of impressive signings this summer.
What happened last season?
The Villans built on their strong finish to the 2022/23 campaign, a season in which Unai Emery took them from potential relegation battlers to a seventh-placed finish and a Europa Conference League spot.
Emery’s side got off to a disastrous start losing 5-1 to Newcastle United on the opening day. They did, however, win five of the next six in the English top-flight.
Villa were consistent for large parts of the season but a patch either side of New Year ended an unlikely title challenge while a horrid run of form towards the end of the campaign made it an interesting final few weeks. They won just three of their final 10 matches and went on a winless four-game streak to end the season. Still, they did enough to secure fourth place, finishing two points clear of Spurs.
The former Villarreal tactician got his side firing. They notched 76 goals, the sixth most in the league while having the joint-seventh best defensive record having conceded 61 goals. They were also one of only five teams to finish the season with 20 or more wins in the Premier League.
Their position in the league was heavily influenced by the form of Ollie Watkins. The England international finished with an average FotMob rating of 7.4 having scored 19 goals and claiming 13 assists. In fact, no player in the Premier League could better his assists haul while Cole Palmer (33) was the only player to finish with more goal contributions than the Villa No. 11 (32).
He was very much the main man for Villa and the hope is that he will continue to be this season.
What has happened during the summer?
Quite a lot. Villa Park has been a hive of activity.
Moussa Diaby, after just one season with the club, has left to join Al-Ittihad. The former Bayer Leverkusen forward involved himself in 14 goals last season and he’s going to be a miss for Villa.
So is Douglas Luiz. The influential midfielder, who scored nine goals, assisted on five occasions and finished the campaign with an average rating of 7.28, joined Juventus.
In the blink of an eye, Villa have lost 28 goals from their starting XI.
And despite being extremely busy in the transfer market, they haven’t really brought in goalscorers.
Amadou Onana arrived from Everton to replace Luiz in midfield, Ian Maatsen signed from Chelsea and will likely compete for the left-back spot. Jaden Philogene, Cameron Archer and Ross Barkley returned to the club while Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea joined from Juventus.
There’s a lot of talent there, but are there any goals? That will be the big question heading into this campaign.
What they should be aiming for next season?
Villa should be looking to battle it out for a Europa League spot this season. It will be hard to build on last season’s exploits, especially with what has gone on this summer.
Juggling Champions League football with bedding in a host of new names might see them struggle in what could be a transitional season. There’s still enough quality within the squad to mount a European challenge under a tactician as good as Unai Emery.
Prediction: 8th
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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