Stan Collymore hits Alysson nail right on the head, here’s why he’s not Aston Villa ready
Former Aston Villa striker Stan Collymore believes that Alysson has an abundance of potential, but is not yet ready to start.
Alysson joined Villa for £8.7million from Brazilian outfit Gremio, with the potential for a further £1.75m in add-ons in the future.
The 19-year-old was Unai Emery’s first signing of the winter transfer window, and he possesses a great amount of pace and trickery on the right wing.
He made his debut in the 1-0 win over Brighton on 11 February, and it’s safe to say that he was very impressive.
Aston Villa host Newcastle at Villa Park in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday, and Collymore believes that leaving him on the bench is the best plan for his development.
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Alysson has a lot of promise but he shouldn’t start vs Newcastle
The Sofascore graphic above clearly shows that he had a brilliant debut on Wednesday, despite only playing for 16 minutes against the Seagulls.
Alysson had just six touches of the ball, but every single one of them looked dangerous, as he was always looking to make an impact in the final third.
He had two touches in the opposition box and made one recovery as Villa clung on for the three points in the closing stages of the match.
| Stat | Alysson |
| Appearances | 42 |
| Goals | 2 |
| Assists | 3 |
It was initially thought that a loan spell would be the best course of action for his development, but Emery has valued keeping him at Villa Park, which means he can certainly play a big part in the second half of the season.
When asked about whether he should start on Saturday, Collymore said on 12 February: “Nope. Coming from the bench for a while, watching and learning until he’s ready.”
“[He has a] running gait spookily like Rogers and looks more [like] a technician than [someone with] outrageous pace, so although there were two or three solid touches last night, there was nothing that demanded a start yet.”
Being compared to Rogers this early in your Premier League career is incredibly impressive, but the Brazilian still has a long way to go before being in contention to start.
Here’s why Stan Collymore is spot on about Alysson
It takes time for a young player to adapt to the physical demands of the Premier League.
For example, Rogers only had four goal contributions in his first six months at Villa Park, but went on to register 14 goals and 13 assists in the 2024-25 season.
It’s even harder for Alysson, who has come to a completely new country and has to adapt to his surroundings along with the level of football.
In the 2025 season of the Brazilian Serie A, he made 47 tackles and 16 interceptions, which shows how defensively strong he is off the ball; a trait that Emery loves from his wide players.
He is also the type of player who gets the fans off their seats, but it’s probably best if this is just limited to 20-minute cameos at the end of certain games.
Therefore, starting in a must-win cup match against Newcastle isn’t the greatest idea.