Amadou Onana hailed after ‘classy’ Champions League display, set to start in Aston Villa v Wolves
Bryan King has hailed Aston Villa midfielder Amadou Onana after his “classy” display in the UEFA Champions League.
The ex-Villa scout believes the 23-year-old should be a mainstay in Unai Emery’s side.
Onana started and scored as Villa recorded a 3-0 victory away at Young Boys in the Champions League on Tuesday (17 September).
And King – speaking exclusively to Villa News – was delighted to see the Belgian bounce back after his struggles in the 3-2 win over Everton (14 September).
“It was a very positive night for Villa,” King said.
“However, I think most football people would have expected them to get a result in Switzerland, it was a nice way for them to start the Champions League after a good result at the weekend.
“Onana had half a game against Everton where things didn’t go right for him. It was his former club, he obviously wanted to impress and everything he did went wrong.
“However, he showed his calibre with a classy performance against Young Boys.
“He still needs time to settle down, he only moved to Villa in the summer. After a few years at Everton, he changed his city, club, manager and teammates, a lot of things come into this. Therefore, it takes time for players to settle.
“One reasonably poor display doesn’t define him. I would be very surprised if he doesn’t start the next game. He should be a mainstay in the Villa team, especially playing alongside Youri Tielemans, that should be the start of a very good partnership in midfield.”
Amadou Onana to become a star under Unai Emery at Aston Villa
Onana was subject to criticism after he was substituted at half-time against Everton last time out in the Premier League.
As a result, King wasn’t entirely sure whether or not the Belgium international would start in the Champions League.
However, not only did Onana start, but he got himself on the scoresheet for the third time in five Villa matches.
Therefore, he reminded everybody of his quality and responded perfectly after a difficult afternoon against his former employers.
In other Aston Villa news, the club have been backed to offer Jhon Duran a brand-new contract.
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