Aston Villa have a host of talent in their ranks however, one of Unai Emery’s best players can be regarded as both crucial and unreliable in the squad.
The 2023/24 season was a remarkable success for Aston Villa, who will return to action in the Champions League next term after finishing fourth in the Premier League.
Unai Emery led Villa to their highest Premier League finish since the 1995/96 campaign, telling of his impact at the club in what was an incredibly bleak year for the squad on the injury front.
By the end of the first 90 minutes of the season, the manager had lost two of his key players to ACL injuries, joined later by another campaign-ending blow on top of a list of other notable absences.
While the three ACL ruptures were devastating, Emery will be thankful in some respect that Boubacar Kamara’s blow came in February rather than earlier in the season, as Villa struggled to find balance in midfield without his presence.
Boubacar Kamara is so important to Unai Emery at Aston Villa
Securing Kamara on a free transfer in the summer of 2022 could go down as one of Steven Gerrard’s greatest successes during his Villa tenure, as the midfielder added the solidity required to develop the middle of the park.
With the former Marseille ace in place, Emery struck the perfect balance between attack and defence, as the 24-year-old acted as Villa’s anchor to allow his counterpart Douglas Luiz to wander upfield.
Prior to his injury, it was clear how important Kamara was to Emery’s midfield however, it sadly took his season-ending injury to clarify that the France international is perhaps integral to Villa’s success.
A statistic relayed by Aston Villa Statto reinforced the player’s importance, displaying that Villa’s win rate in the Premier League fell significantly after the £150k-a-week midfielder’s injury, winning 13 from 20 with him in the side and just seven from 18 without him.
Once dubbed a ‘phenomenon’ by Rolando, Villa were incredibly fortunate to land Kamara on a free transfer when they did, however, there is an argument to prove that Gerrard’s signing is also a slight hindrance to the club.
Boubacar Kamara’s injury record lets him down
When Kamara is fit and playing in Emery’s system, it seems as though no talent would come close to claiming his territory at Villa Park although, the midfielder’s fitness record is a real concern.
Speaking about the 24-year-old on the Claret and Blue podcast, journalist Sam Tighe shared his split opinion on Emery’s prized midfielder.
“What’s been very clear is that without Boubacar Kamara, things get a lot more difficult for Aston Villa and he’s now on his third big chunk of time that he has missed since he joined the club.
“He kind of dips in and out, he’s so important but he is unfortunately somewhat unreliable. It’s probably about time that Villa do something about that.”
Tighe’s concerns ring true, as based on Transfermarkt’s injury record of the player, Kamara has missed a total of 187 days to injury since joining Villa, amounting to 28% of his time at the club since joining in July 2022 being lost to absences.
The numbers are staggering for a player whose presence is deemed critical to keeping Emery’s side ticking, however, the question must be asked; just how important can an individual be if he is equally as unreliable?
It’s a considerably difficult situation for Villa who have an immeasurable talent on their hands, but one that is yet to complete a Premier League season uninterrupted by injury.
For now, the most important thing is that Kamara takes time to recover from his excruciating ACL rupture, with his return set to come after the 2024/25 season gets underway.
