With his contract expiring in June, Aston Villa have a huge decision to make over the future of striker Jhon Duran.
After capturing him from Chicago Fire for £18 million in January last year, Jhon Duran has had to play second fiddle to Ollie Watkins.
In the Premier League this term, he is yet to make a start, though he has appeared 14 times off the bench, scoring in victories over Everton and Crystal Palace.
Duran’s lack of game time has prompted interest from elsewhere. AC Milan were the first to rear their necks before Villa rebuffed approaches, as per Mail Sport, from divisional rivals Chelsea and West Ham.
The approach was on a loan with the option to buy, however, after rejecting advances from other clubs, it appears Unai Emery could keep the towering Colombian at the club.
If he does remain at Villa Park, Duran faces a defining six months that could make or break his Villa career.
Jhon Duran must prove himself at Aston Villa
The blistering form of Watkins has effectively shut Duran out of Emery’s immediate plans, but the youngster is yet to take his chance in claret and blue.
It has been hinted that off-field issues have curtailed his chances of featuring more. The head coach and his player have sometimes not seen eye to eye, with the 20-year-old thought to be frustrated with decisions to substitute him at various points during Villa’s European season.
He’s also said that his “dream” is to play elsewhere and that is a comment that upset Villa supporters.
For the young striker to put his previous antics behind him and get back into the good books, he must start impressing his manager on the pitch.
Contrary to what his top-flight minutes suggest, Duran has been given a healthy amount of action across other competitions, though it is fair to say he’s struggled to take his chance.
He’s been substituted at half-time on two occasions after performing poorly; the 1-0 victory over Zrinjski Mostar in the Europa Conference League and in the 2-1 defeat to Everton in the Carabao Cup.
Across six starts, predominantly against lesser opposition, Duran has failed to score and has not given Emery any reason to consider giving starting him over Watkins in the Premier League.
Should Aston Villa give Duran a new contract?
Duran is a “raw” talent, as described by journalist Josh Bunting, but he does boast attributes to his game that should reward him with a new contract.
Not only is he as strong as an Ox, but he’s also superb at holding up the ball, great at pressing and has that frightening pace that can give defenders nightmares.
Although he’s been disappointing this season and Villa are willing to listen to offers for him, he has plenty of time to grow into his potential.
At the age of 20, he’s still learning his trade as a centre forward and it can’t have been easy for him to watch Watkins bang in the goals while he’s sat on the bench.
Duran hasn’t currently done enough to deserve a new contract, but in the second half of the season, he will have plenty of opportunities to make himself a hero as the Villans battle across all fronts.
