Unai Emery is currently preparing his Aston Villa players for a massive Champions League clash against Juventus on Wednesday night.
When the fixtures were announced earlier this season, Aston Villa’s clash against Juventus was billed as Douglas Luiz’s big return to Villa Park.
Luiz was sold by Villa in the summer to help satisfy PSR concerns after helping his side qualify for the Champions League.
The 26-year-old has since endured a difficult start to life at Juventus having missed the last seven matches through injury and only starting two Serie A games before then.
Luiz will miss the clash against Villa on Wednesday night through injury but his tough start to life in Turin has prompted rumours linking him with a January return to Birmingham.
Unai Emery’s responds to Douglas Luiz Aston Villa rumours
In an ideal world, Villa would have never sold Luiz, although offloading him meant they weren’t hit with a point deduction and were able to spend those funds instead.
Most supporters would welcome the Brazilian back to the club with open arms, especially given he how he left on a high.
However, in Tuesday’s pre-match press conference, Unai Emery rubbished any claims linking the talented midfielder with a move back to his former club in January.
Emery said, as per Birmingham Live: “I don’t understand really the question, he must be happy there.
“He must get the challenge there with his quality and to help them to get their objective collectively. I am not thinking really about him wanting to leave from there, but I don’t know. I think he is now injured.”
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Aston Villa miss Luiz and Boubacar Kamara partnership
One ingredient in Emery’s recipe for success last term was the incredible partnership of Boubacar Kamara and Luiz in midfield.
The duo were instrumental in almost everything Aston Villa did from a defensive and attacking sense, with the Brazilian’s ball-playing skills perfectly complementing the defensive attributes of Kamara.
| Apps | Goals | Assists | KeyP | LongB | Tackles | Yel | SpG | PS% | AerialsWon | MotM | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | 9 | 5 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 12 | 1.4 | 89.4 | 0.7 | 3 | 6.95 |
The above table demonstrates how important Luiz was in the heartbeat of Villa’s midfield, as he was involved in 14 Premier League goals and was a constant supply line into the channels.
Youri Tielemans has stepped up since Luiz departed but former left-back Stephen Warnock has previously made his thoughts known on the duo.
Warnock shared his concerns for Villa defensively and explained how Emery misses an organised partnership.
“My biggest concern is defensively. They don’t look as sound as they did last year. They don’t look as organised, so often last season, the midfield was Kamara and Douglas (Luiz),” he said.
“That relationship has gone. Kamara is coming back from his injury. Douglas has left. I think you take away Douglas and you realise how important he was and how important of a player he was for Aston Villa last season.”
Warnock’s assessment of the Brazilian’s influence is spot on, as Villa looked shaky defensively against Crystal Palace, with Stan Collymore criticising Emery’s high line.
