Troy Deeney has named Aston Villa star Amadou Onana in his Premier League Team of the Week for his goalscoring display in the 2-1 win over Leicester City at the weekend.
Aston Villa made it two wins from three games with the victory away at Leicester City on Saturday, meaning Unai Emery‘s side head into the first international break of the campaign 7th in the league.
After a busy summer that saw Douglas Luiz and Moussa Diaby leave the club and seven players signed it has been a decent start to the season, with the only defeat coming against an Arsenal side who are once again expected to challenge for the Premier League title.
Even in that 2-0 defeat Villa had their chances and, had Ollie Watkins shown the form he was in last season, they could well have won on the day.
- READ MORE: Tony Cascarino shares honest Ollie Watkins verdict after Aston Villa win over Leicester City
There were a number of strong individual performances in the 2-1 win over Leicester on Saturday, but it was £50 million summer signing Amadou Onana who stood out for Troy Deeney.
Troy Deeney names Aston Villa’s Amadou Onana in Premier League Team of the Week
Onana was the marquee summer signing at Villa, with the giant Belgian tasked with helping to fill the Luiz void.
He has so far done that with aplomb and endeared himself to the Villa faithful in the process; particularly given he has two goals in three games.
- READ MORE: What Amadou Onana said about ‘special’ Aston Villa fans who chanted his name v Leicester City
It is not just the clubs’ fans who have been left impressed, though.
Former Watford striker Deeney has taken over from Garth Crooks in selecting the Premier League Team of the Week for BBC Sport this season.
Deeney selected Onana alongside Wolves’ Jean-Ricner Bellegarde at the heart of the midfield with Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze just in front and was full of praise for the Villa man.
Deeney wrote: “I was at this game and he was miles better than anybody else. He ran through people.
“When he came off, Aston Villa looked like they could lose the game. He had been running away from people and putting in massive tackles.”
Onana joined by Aston Villa team-mate Lamare Bogarde in Deeney’s team
Onana has quickly helped Villa fans forget all about Luiz with his all action displays and his solid partnership with Youri Tielemans from playing together at international level has really shown too.
- READ MORE: Aston Villa star cemented place in Unai Emery’s starting XI with ‘excellent’ Leicester City display
However, it was not just Onana who made Deeney’s team, with Villa debutant Lamare Bogarde also included.
Bogarde was a surprise inclusion against Leicester, with 18-year-old Kosta Nedeljkovic expected to come in for the injured Matty Cash for his full debut.
Usually a centre-back, Bogarde filled in at right-back and showed real maturity on his Premier League debut.
This led to Deeney selecting the 20-year-old in his Team of the Week, commenting: “I’ve gone a bit different at the back. He made his debut for Aston Villa and handled himself very well.”
