Unai Emery has clear message for Amadou Onana as ‘inconsistent’ claim shared at Aston Villa
Unai Emery wants more from Amadou Onana after his recent performances for Aston Villa.
The midfielder has caught the eye for the B6 outfit in the Premier League of late, and he has started in four consecutive games since the October international break.
Onana was excellent for Aston Villa in their 1-0 win over Manchester City, and his performance was also strong in the defeat away at Liverpool last weekend.
The 24-year-old has emerged as a key figure for the second city side in recent weeks, and Unai Emery may have a clear plan for him moving forward.
Amadou Onana told he needs to retain recent level every week
Aston Villa fans have warmed to Onana of late, as the Belgium international has found his form as the season has worn on.
He was an expensive acquisition for them in the summer of 2024 at £50million, and the Villa Park faithful are now starting to see the best of the midfielder.
Onana has attracted interest from Saudi Arabia in the past, but the club hierarchy worked hard to keep him in their ranks over the recent summer window.
Ex-Villa scout Bryan King – speaking exclusively to Villa News – believes that Emery will want to see Onana’s recent performance level become the norm, and adds that he hasn’t lived up to expectations at the club so far.
“I think he (Onana) has upped his ante,” King said.
“He’s certainly put himself up the rankings, that’s for sure. Emery will now want to see that every time he gets picked. That’s been his problem; he’s been very inconsistent.
“He’s got to do that again in the next few games, and then he can start saying he’s in the class of (Youri) Tielemans, (Boubacar) Kamara, (John) McGinn.
“Onana has got to put himself in that bracket permanently. He hasn’t before, he’s made it easy for Emery to drop him. They signed him for a lot of money, and he hasn’t fulfilled what they thought he was going to.”
Amadou Onana has completed 15 defensive actions in two games for Aston Villa
Onana has received plenty of praise at Aston Villa for his recent run of form, and it is has been his work without the ball that has really caught the eye.
The former Everton man covers every blade of grass in the midfield, and his ball-winning prowess at the heart of the team has been showcased by the fact that he has completed 15 defensive actions in the last two league games.
That ability to break up play and protect his back four makes Onana an invaluable member of Emery’s group, but the boss will certainly be keen to see him kick on and establish himself as an undroppable player.
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