A seemingly throwaway comment Ross Barkley made following Aston Villa’s win over Luton Town in October may actually have been a significant driver of his signing this summer.
After the sales of Tim Iroegbunam, Omari Kellyman and Douglas Luiz ahead of the 30th June PSR deadline, this week has been all about incomings at Aston Villa.
On Monday, the arrivals of both Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea were announced; the pair joining as part of the deal that saw Luiz join Juventus.
Confirmation of that deal was soon followed by the news that Ross Barkley will be returning to the club for the 2024/25 season as his £5 million move from Luton Town was confirmed.
What new Aston Villa signing Ross Barkley said to Matty Cash in October
It is not Barkley’s first spell at Villa Park, with the midfielder spending the 2020/21 season on loan at Villa from Chelsea.
After starting well, Barkley struggled with injuries in the second half of the campaign before returning to his parent club in the summer of 2021.
After a spell at Nice, 30-year-old Barkley made a Premier League return last summer with a surprise move to Luton, where he enjoyed a career revival under Rob Edwards.
His standout performances in a deeper role convinced Unai Emery he should add the England international to his ranks ahead of the season, but it may actually have been the manager’s attention to detail that persuaded Barkley Villa was the right move.
According to The Athletic, Barkley was left impressed by the number of planned set-piece routines Villa had up their sleeve during Emery’s side’s 3-1 win over Luton in October.
Speaking after the game, Villa right-back Matty Cash explained: “Ross Barkley said to me, ‘How many set pieces have you always got?!’”.
Working under Unai Emery significant in Barkley signing
Emery is renowned for his meticulous nature, leaving no stone unturned in his preparation for games.
- READ MORE: The personal Unai Emery meeting that convinced ‘unbelievable’ transfer target to join Aston Villa
One element of this is the planning that goes into set-pieces and that is what left Barkley so impressed early last season.
The Athletic confirmed as much, saying: ‘Luton midfielder Barkley was impressed and surprised by Aston Villa’s attention to detail.
Things had changed since he had played for the club on loan from Chelsea three seasons earlier, when they were an improving, albeit mid-table, Premier League side’.
There is no doubting the respect Emery has within the game and it looks as though he has again been a key factor in Villa signing one of their transfer targets in Barkley.
