The day has finally come for Aston Villa fans to welcome Ezri Konsa, Ollie Watkins and Emi Martinez back to Bodymoor Heath.
It’s been an encouraging summer for Aston Villa, who have made their presence in the transfer market known.
Unai Emery and Monchi appear to have a clear plan in preparation for the 2024/25 campaign, which will see Champions League football return to Villa Park.
As expected with welcoming seven new faces and bidding farewell to two key players, Villa have shown signs that a period of patience may be required at the start of the season.
Emery will be aware that his new arrivals will need time to adapt to their new roles in the squad, with a sense of structure lacking during recent pre-season friendlies.
After a torrid time in the United States where Villa lost three from three and conceded seven goals, fans will be delighted to see some familiar faces back in training.
Aston Villa fans react as Ezri Konsa returns to training at Bodymoor Heath
On Tuesday, Villa’s social media team announced the news that fans had all been waiting for, as Ezri Konsa returned to Bodymoor Heath.
Konsa wasn’t the only star name to return home, as Ollie Watkins and Emi Martinez were also ready to rejoin the action.
As Villa shared a picture of Konsa on X, fans swarmed to the comments to share their joy at the defender returning to B6 after an extended break following Euro 2024.
One supporter started the celebration by saying, “WHAT A DAY!” with another agreeing with, “Ezriiiiii welcome back.”
It’s clear just how highly the 26-year-old is regarded in Birmingham, with fans emphasising the versatile defender’s importance to Emery’s side.
One Villa fan said, “The main man,” which was echoed by another follower who dubbed Konsa “England’s best defender.”
Some supporters couldn’t contain their excitement about Emery’s favoured right-back’s return from his holidays.
“I’m running around my house celebrating,” one Villa lover said, with another adding “Get in! Great to see him.”
After seeing the struggles that Villa combatted in the United States, many were quite frankly relieved to see a player of Konsa’s stature return to the squad.
One fan said, “We are so back,” with another calling for the pre-season action before to be forgotten, “Yeah pre-season starts now.”
Konsa has been sorely missed in pre-season
After reaching the finals of Euro 2024 and Copa America respectively, Konsa, Watkins and Martinez were granted extended leave to recover from their action-packed summers.
Fans are thrilled to see Villa’s spine return after experiencing a lack of consistency throughout the pre-season friendlies so far, with Konsa having the ability to implement structure to the right side.
While Kosta Nedeljkovic and Matty Cash impressed at times during pre-season, supporters will be grateful to have the England international back to raise the standard at full-back.
Having only just returned to the fold, it’s unlikely that Konsa will feature against Athletic Bilbao tomorrow evening, with the closing friendly against Borussia Dortmund more likely.
