Unai Emery already plans for life without Lucas Digne amid new Aston Villa development
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery may already be planning for life without Frenchman Lucas Digne at Villa Park after a new development regarding a new defensive transfer target this summer.
According to Spanish journalist Matteo Moretto, taking to his personal Twitter account on Monday 14 August, the Villans have shown an interest in Sevilla left-back Marcos Acuna
It is believed that talks are ongoing between the Villans and the La Liga outfit over the Argentina international making a move to Villa Park this summer.
Unai Emery is desperately looking to bring in the 31-year-old as he aims to add defensive reinforcements following the opening-day defeat to Newcastle United on 12 August, and Digne’s struggles at St James’ Park now looks to have forced his West Midlands into serious peril.
Villa currently possesses no other options on the left side of defence – barring 19-year-old academy prospect Seb Revan who isn’t yet ready for a Villa Park bow – so Frenchman Digne was expected to play an extremely important role for Emery’s side in the coming weeks after his career in West Midlands have certainly left a lot to be desired.
According to WhoScored, the former Everton full-back signing has been outperformed in numerous attacking facets, in comparison to Moreno, who only spent just five months at the club. recording just 0.3 shots on goal last year compared to Moreno’s average of 0.7. The latter also amassed an impressive average of 1.2 key passes per outing to Digne’s worrying 0.6.
Since arriving at Villa Park, Emery has often tasked his left-back with venturing into the final third on a regular basis, offering plenty of width and attacking vigour, while his right-back, often the now departed Ashley Young, was made to sit back and tuck into a narrow defensive position.
Digne has proven pretty shy in that sense, as the stats show, averaging just 0.1 dribbles per game at a dreadful rate of 21% [SofaScore], underperforming his 1.92 expected assists and creating just two big chances throughout the 2022/23 campaign.
These are worrying numbers for such an experienced international player, and such stats mean Digne may not have the required quality to trump Moreno in the long term. And it now seems as if Digne’s days at the club are numbered after the reported interest in Acuna.
Aston Villa are on the lookout for left-sided defenders after Tyrone Mings suffered a “significant” knee injury in the game against the Magpies at the weekend, and January signing Alex Moreno is also currently on the treatment table with a hamstring problem.
Moreno’s injury forced Emery to start Digne against Newcastle and the former Everton man yet again failed to show his qualities and prove why he deserves a future at Villa Park.
Despite boasting impressive individual numbers and ranking as Villa’s joint fifth-best ranked player [SofaScore], he certainly contributed to their numerous lapses in concentration and defensive frailties as Newcastle ran riot in front of their own fans.
Acuna offers great experience at club level, having made 386 career appearances, while adding 34 goals and 63 assists to prove he’s not just a defender but also has plenty to offer going forwards – something Digne has long struggled with during his time at the club.
It remains to be seen whether Acuna represents the perfect solution for Aston Villa at this moment in time but their interest in the Argentinian veteran certainly points to Emery’s desire to potentially see the back of Digne and show him the Villa Park exit door before long.
In other Aston Villa news, the club are hoping to secure the signing of a midfielder this week.