Aston Villa ‘to benefit massively’ as Iling-Junior announcement made
Aston Villa were dealt a bad hand when they sold Douglas Luiz to Juventus last summer, and received two players in exchange.
Enzo Barrenechea and Samuel Iling-Junior both came the other way as star midfielder Luiz departed for Turin, but neither remained at Villa Park.
Barrenechea enjoyed a successful loan spell at Valencia, but it is a different story for Iling-Junior, who had a mixed loan spell at Middlesbrough.
Aston Villa may look to sell the winger this summer, but there has been a positive development over his future.
Iling-Junior in England Under-21s squad
England Under-21s are set to compete in the European Championships, and Iling-Junior has been named in the squad for the tournament.
Lee Carsley has picked the Villa winger alongside some top talents including Ethan Nwaneri and Jobe Bellingham, and he could play a key part this summer.
Villa confirmed the squad announcement via their official X account on Friday (6 June).
| Stat | Iling-Junior |
| Appearances | 16 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Assists | 2 |
The 21-year-old has 13 England U21s caps, with two goals to his name, and he could either start as a wing back or a winger, depending on what system Carsley will use.
Villa will be hopeful that he has a good tournament and features regularly, as it could help them in the transfer market this summer.
Iling-Junior can put himself in shop window this summer
It appears that Iling-Junior has no future at Villa under Unai Emery, and with the club in need of sales to boost their financial fair play status, the winger could be on the chopping block.
The youngster joined for a fee of £11.8million last year, in a separate transaction as Luiz went the other way to Juventus, and Villa will hope to make profit on the books.
A strong tournament could help in this regard, with scouts across Europe keeping a close eye on proceedings, and should Iling-Junior impress alongside some of the best talents on the continent, he could raise his own value enough to attract significant interest, or even earn himself a spot at Villa.
Although Emery may have no plans for Iling-Junior, he could be a useful squad player if given the chance, and Villa will be monitoring his progress throughout the tournament.