‘Waste of talent’ – Aston Villa fans get last laugh as Jhon Duran antics encapsulate pitiful fall from grace
Aston Villa fans have been left amused by the fact that Jhon Duran now finds himself playing for his third club since leaving Villa Park last year.
The striker joined Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr in January last year for a fee in the region of £65million, which NSWE may be chuckling over.
The Colombian is now with Russian outfit Zenit after having an uninspiring loan move with Fenerbahce in the first part of the season.
Duran‘s choice to leave Villa Park has so far aged badly, and things don’t appear to be getting any better, with controversial footage emerging from just five minutes into his debut for Zenit in a friendly on Tuesday.
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Aston Villa fans pity at the ‘state’ of Jhon Duran now
Duran had the world at his feet with Aston Villa, and will no doubt have been a consistent goalscorer in the Premier League under Unai Emery.
However, the number nine faced competition with Ollie Watkins for a starting spot, and fled from B6 at his first offering of a pay rise.
Now, his decision to leave, regardless of a pursuit for money or growth, looks rather sad.
- Duran scored 20 times in 78 games for Aston Villa
- He left while just two years into his deal that ran until 2030
After being spotted manhandling a defender in his non-competitive debut for Zenit, Villa fans have reacted on X, with many feeling grateful for the profit that was made from his departure.
One Villa fan said: “No former Villa player will have a bigger fall off than Duran. What a waste of talent. We 1000 per cent didn’t sell the wrong striker.”
Another Aston Villa supporter said: “Duran is on a road to nowhere, albeit with a bed made of £50 notes. See him playing in the Russian league, where he got booked running through. It looked like he was playing on a school’s football pitch.”
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Aston Villa have their own striker debacle to figure out
The problem that Villa had when Duran was at the club was the controversy surrounding who started between Watkins and the now Zenit man.
The Villans will be hoping that won’t be the case again with Tammy Abraham pushing for a starting spot after showing early signs of scoring ability at Villa Park once again.
Watkins is on track to have one of his worst individual seasons for the Villans, despite having the motivation there for a spot at England’s World Cup campaign in the summer.
Emery has shown time and time again that he prefers a one-striker formation, and supporters will be hoping that the Spaniard is not back to square one in his previous predicament over who to start, like what was seen with Duran.
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