Unai Emery must expect more from Moussa Diaby to justify Aston Villa £50m+ transfer fee
Unai Emery will be hoping to see a new and improved Moussa Diaby at Aston Villa ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.
The 24-year-old winger arrived at Villa Park last summer, with the club splashing a club-record £51.9million on the Bayer Leverkusen star for Emery, quickly becoming a much-loved figure in the Midlands. [The Guardian]
Diaby hit the ground running upon his arrival and has had a consistent flow of goal contributions, notching 10 goals and nine assists in all competitions.
However, the young star has noticeably been drifting out of important matches in recent weeks, which Emery will be hoping he will change as the club enter the Champions League next season.
Despite the Villans no longer playing for anything, his performance against Crystal Palace highlighted that exact problem which has emerged in the last few weeks.
It was one of the Frenchman’s worst displays in a Villa shirt as Emery’s side were pummelled 5-0 at Selhurst Park on the final day of the Premier League season (19 May).
Moussa Diaby must step up as Aston Villa secure Champions League football
Diaby’s initial statistics suggest the winger had a decent display despite his side conceding five goals, maintaining a 93 per cent passing accuracy and a 100 per cent shot accuracy (2/2). [FotMob]
However, having accumulated an xG of 0.54, it is a wonder how he did not manage to notch his 11th goal of the season, which could have given Villa a much-needed equaliser in the match.
According to FBref, though, Diaby ranks in the bottom 21 percentile for non-penalty goals compared to wingers in Europe’s top five leagues, suggesting he still has a lot of improvement to do since his record move.
In addition to this, the 24-year-old won zero per cent of his ground duels at Selhurst Park, losing all seven battles, as per FotMob, which will come as no surprise with his bottom 29 percentile ranking for tackles.
There is no doubt that the Frenchman possesses a lot of skill and talent, but few will argue that he still has more to give in a Villa shirt, especially if the club are to compete in one of the toughest competitions next season.
With Leon Bailey the closest player in terms of goals to Ollie Watkins, Emery needs another of his stars to step up in the upcoming campaign, and Diaby must ensure that he is that player.
In other Aston Villa news, an injury expert has issued a fresh update on Jacob Ramsey who may now have a stress fracture.
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