Aston Villa fans will be delighted that midfielder Boubacar Kamara is closing in on a return to first-team action.
The Frenchman suffered a horrible ACL injury in February’s defeat to Manchester United and since then, he has been working hard to recover.
Kamara returned to Aston Villa training in September, with Unai Emery claiming the 24-year-old and Tyrone Mings would be ready to take their place in the squad after the international break.
Mings and Kamara have since been involved in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Sheffield Wednesday. While it wasn’t disclosed how many minutes they played, it can only be positive that both players are returning to full fitness.
For Aston Villa, Mings offers exceptional experience and leadership in Emery’s defence, whereas his teammate offers attributes at the base of midfield that can benefit the rest of the team.
Boubacar Kamara can unlock Youri Tieleman’s true potential
Villa lack a natural defensive midfielder in their squad without Kamara being fully fit and available but the Frenchman’s return is vital.
Of the options in that position, including Ross Barkley, Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans, Kamara is arguably the greatest at winning the ball back and recycling possession.
Emery’s men have struggled defensively at times this season, and having Kamara drop into defence out of possession would have helped massively.
Not only does he offer extra protection for the likes of Pau Torres and Ezri Konsa but he can also unlock Tielemans further up the pitch.
Last season, the ‘genius’ playmaker was utilised many times as a number 10, pulling the strings further up the pitch behind Ollie Watkins and that level of quality is something the Villans have lacked, with Morgan Rogers criticised for his final ball.
That is according to journalist Jacob Tanswell, who spoke about the return of Kamara on the 1874 podcast: “If you can have Onana and Kamara with Kamara sitting, Onana crash in the box, but then have a Tielemans who is fantastic sometimes in that number 10 role or coming off the left, for example, where Jacob Ramsey position is, or just behind the striker, threading those passes through in games where you need it, you need that final ball. Villa were lacking that against Man United. I think it would be fantastic.”
Youri Tielemans is perfect for the number 10 role
Although Tielemans has flourished as a deep-lying playmaker, the Belgian international has the skillset – as seen last season – that makes him better suited to playing in an attacking midfield role.
As highlighted by FBref, the 27-year-old ranks in the top 8% of Premier League midfielders for assists per 90 and the top 18% for progressive passes.
That is metrics accumulated from a deeper role, returning to the number 10 position can see those numbers skyrocket along with Villa’s chance creation.
Of course, Tielemans playing in that role would perhaps see Jacob Ramsey ousted from the starting XI and Morgan Rogers starting on the left instead, but it’s a dynamic that could work brilliantly with Kamara at the base of midfield.
