Aston Villa beat Walsall in their first pre-season friendly on Wednesday night in a game that saw Kosta Nedeljkovic feature for the first time.
After a long wait, Aston Villa fans were able to watch Unai Emery’s side in action for the first time since the 2023/24 season concluded.
The Villans beat League Two outfit Walsall 3-0 to kick off their pre-season campaign with goals courtesy of Louie Barry and a brace for Morgan Rogers.
The fixture was a chance for Emery to review his players in preparation for the 2024/25 calendar, with new arrivals and returning loan players amongst the first-team regulars.
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Kosta Nedeljkovic impressed for Aston Villa against Walsall in pre-season friendly
Emery played two entirely different XI’s in the first and second half against Walsall, allowing every squad player to have a chance to impress.
One figure made his highly-anticipated non-competitive debut for Villa, as Kosta Nedeljkovic played the second half against the League Two side.
Signed in January, the 18-year-old returned to Red Star on loan to play out the remainder of the 2023/24 campaign, where he excelled for his boyhood club.
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Having featured in the Champions League for Red Star last term, the right-back’s quality was known to some extent prior to his first Villa outing, with his display on Wednesday night only reinforcing such understanding.
Journalist John Townley handed the teenager a 6/10 rating in his BirminghamLive player ratings, describing him as a ‘liverwire’ on the right flank, backing him to develop into a ‘very promising defender’.
Townley wasn’t the only Villa figure in the media to praise Nedeljkovic, as journalist Frankie Maguire lauded the 18-year-old’s ‘super proactive’ display in his first outing.
Positive early assessment of Nedeljkovic could be worrying for Matty Cash
Having played senior football at the highest level during the 2023/24 campaign at Red Star, securing four appearances in the Champions League, it’s expected that Nedeljkovic will have a spot around the first team at Villa next term.
The right-back seems to have everything Emery would want in a full-back based on his encouraging pre-season display.
While it’s promising to see the youngster fit so comfortably into the squad, it could spell bad news for Matty Cash, whose claim to the starting XI is already in jeopardy.
The Poland international was axed from the starting lineup last season as the manager favoured Ezri Konsa, with Nedeljkovic now having the potential to add more competition to the battle for game time.
It could be detrimental to Cash, but it’s overly positive for Villa, who required added depth after seeing how short the defence was last campaign as injury struck.
Fortunately for the two players, there will be plenty of opportunity to secure minutes next season, with the Champions League, Premier League and domestic cup competitions to fight for.
