Unai Emery has been given something to think about ahead of next season as one star shone in Aston Villa’s pre-season friendly win over Spartak Trnava.
It’s been a strong week for Aston Villa, as Unai Emery’s side kicked off their pre-season schedule with duels against Walsall and Spartak Trnava.
First, the Villans beat Walsall 3-0 in a friendly at the Bescot Stadium, followed most recently by beating Spartak Trnava in Slovakia by the same scoreline.
The victory in Slovakia set Emery’s squad up well ahead of their tour of the United States, with one player giving the boss something to keep his eye on in the pre-season challenges ahead.
Cameron Archer scored for Aston Villa in pre-season friendly against Spartak Trnava
Morgan Rogers stole the headlines once more as he added to his brace against Walsall with a goal and an assist against Spartak Trnava.
While the January arrival has been impressive this summer, he’s not the only young English forward to give Emery something to think about ahead of next season.
Cameron Archer was on the scoresheet against Spartak Trnava, finishing a superb effort to re-announce himself to the club.
The striker joined Sheffield United last summer in a permanent transfer however, a clause in his contract saw him return as the Blades were relegated back to the Championship.
While at first it was expected that the 22-year-old would immediately leave Villa to find another new venture, Emery could be tempted to keep the forward around after seeing his natural finishing ability against Spartak Trnava.
As well as being a reliable finisher, as seen during his impressive loan stint at Middlesbrough in 2022/23, where he contributed to 17 goals in 20 Championship appearances, Archer could be about to help Emery solve one pending issue.
Unai Emery may not need to replace Jhon Duran as Archer shines in pre-season
If Archer was to leave the club again this summer, it would be expected that the Villans would dive into the market for a new forward.
Jhon Duran looks likely to bid farewell to Villa Park just a year and a half after signing from the MLS, with his path seeming to be very different to Emery’s.
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At first, it was expected that Villa would have to splash out on a new alternative to Ollie Watkins to replace the Colombian however, the manager could save Villa millions by keeping hold of Archer.
There is some flexibility to what Villa require from a second-choice striker, with Watkins being the firm number one after his marvellous 2023/24 campaign.
Duran was a reliable scorer when called upon last term, which is something Archer could also be if Villa opt to keep him around.
Reacting to Villa’s win over Spartak Trnava, journalist John Townley described the forward as being a ‘poacher’ in Emery’s side, via BirminghamLive, which is exactly what is needed if Duran is to depart.
It would be a fascinating turn of events to see Archer remain at the club, in what could be a smart move from Villa who could not only save millions in the market, but could better develop a player made at Bodymoor Heath.
