‘Unai Emery can’t ignore Donyell Malen’ after Aston Villa showing v Fulham
Donyell Malen once again caught the eye for Aston Villa despite being snubbed again by Unai Emery against Fulham on Saturday.
The Villans welcomed the West London outfit to Villa Park on 3 May and secured a much-needed three points in the race for a top-five finish.
Youri Tielemans powered home a John McGinn corner to secure a huge victory in B6, seeing the game out from 12 minutes onwards.
It is fair to say that Malen helped to take the win, showcasing his talent to Emery once again as a second-half substitute.
Malen shines for Aston Villa v Fulham
It is fair to say that the Netherlands international has been a well-received addition for the Villans despite a general lack of game time.
The versatile forward missed out on the Champions League squad for the second half of the season but hasn’t shown a poor attitude.
Regardless of this, Emery has been unwilling to hand the man signed from Borussia Dortmund a fair share of minutes in the Premier League.
| Stat (Premier League 24/25) | Donyell Malen |
| Starts | 2 |
| Minutes | 288 |
| Goals | 3 |
| Minutes per goal | 89 |
This once again saw Malen come off the bench against the Cottagers, where he was once again electric in a cameo appearance.
The 26-year-old was able to clock up three shots in just 19 minutes, smashing the bar with one of those, coming desperately close to opening the scoring [FotMob].
This was added to by a willingness to get forward wherever possible, as five of his nine touches came inside the Fulham penalty box.
The Dutchman is also extremely willing to hold up the ball and battle for possession, showcased by his 100 per cent duel success and failure to be dispossessed at Villa Park.
With three Premier League games remaining in the Premier League season, it could be time for the winter signing to finally get his chance.
Malen deserves starting role at Aston Villa
There aren’t many players who put in so much effort in claret and blue, especially compared to the lack of reward they receive for that work.
The likes of Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers are continuously picked by Emery despite their general lack of form for the Villans.
With Marcus Rashford also missing through injury, it makes little sense as to why Malen isn’t being given a chance to shine in B6.
It will be interesting to see if that changes in the coming weeks or if the ex-PSV man has to wait until next season for a true chance to shine.