Aaron Ramsey is ready to step up into the Aston Villa first-team, he’s better than Bertrand Traore and Philippe Coutinho
We all know how good the Aston Villa academy is, and this season is proving it with several players shining while out on loan elsewhere.
One of the young starlets to shine the most this season though has been attacking midfielder Aaron Ramsey, brother of Jacob and England Under-20 international.
So far this season he has spent time on loan at two clubs in the Championship, Norwich and now Middlesbrough and has done excellently with both before his first spell was ended due to a knee injury.
But now after pushing his way into the first-team at the Riverside Stadium and helping them get into the playoff positions that Norwich had occupied for so long this season, there are calls for him to return to Villa Park and get an opportunity.
Much like his brother, he has taken the opportunity to shine with regular first-team football. But he is more versatile, capable of playing in central midfield or across the pitch behind the striker which would make his presence in the squad more valued by Unai Emery.
But on top of that, it would allow more flexibility in the transfer market for the club, knowing that they have the younger Ramsey brother ready to slot in wherever necessary.
The current options in those attacking midfield positions are Jacob, Leon Bailey, Emi Buendia, Bertrand Traore and Philippe Coutinho, and the stats prove that Ramsey is a better option than the latter two at the very least.
According to WhoScored, Ramsey has had a better season per-90 minutes than both players in almost every single metric that counts.
Going forward he has five goals and one assist, more than both Traore and Coutinho combined, while he also is more secure on the ball with a better passing accuracy percentage for the season too.
Defensively he works hard, making 1.1 tackles per game and 0.5 interceptions per game while he has a better aerial duel win rate too.
Add to that the fact he averages more key passes and dribbles past his opponents far more often than his rivals for the position and it shows he is ready to step up and push for a place in the Aston Villa side.
The likelihood is that both Traore and Coutinho are moved on during the summer transfer window, but Emery shouldn’t splash the cash too heavily in the attacking midfield positions.
He can spend the cash wisely and save in those positions by using Ramsey and putting the money to better use elsewhere in the squad.
The alternative would be another loan spell next season but to a team in the Premier League, but we’ve seen before that those loans don’t always go too well because when the going gets tough managers tend to rely on experience.
The best place for the likes of Ramsey and Cameron Archer to shine and continue their development would be at Villa Park under a manager like Emery, at a team like this new look Aston Villa.
In other Aston Villa news, Philippe Coutinho must be allowed to leave the club amid “Huge” interest from abroad.