(Credit: Breaking Media)

Jacob Raw

Mon 23 March 2026 16:40, UK

Aston Villa signed Modou Cisse last summer, and the young defender continues to impress at LASK before his return to B6 this year.

The centre-back was pictured with Monchi after signing a pre-contra rt agreement with the Villans last July, before being sent back to LASK to spend the 2025-26 season on loan.

The defender was seen as a project signing, but internal figures at Villa Park will be hoping that he comes back ready to push into Unai Emery’s first team.

Still only 20 years old, he’s already made 37 professional appearances and looks to be an important part of LASK’s side this campaign.

Cisse will hope to impress Emery upon his return, as the readings from his displays this season should already give the Villans confidence in his ability.

Modou Cisse has been excellent for LASK this season

Roberto Olabe wants to build Aston Villa’s future through the signing of young players, and though he didn’t purchase Cisse, he’ll be delighted to work with him.

The Villans already have the likes of Alysson and Brian Madjo on their books, but the summer return of Cisse will practically act as a new signing for Emery to look at.

As highlighted in the table above, Cisse’s Sofascore rating for the season so far is 7.09. He boasts a 66 per cent ground duel win rate, while winning 4.2 on average per match.

The central defender also has a high 86 per cent pass success, which increases to 94 per cent when inside his own half.

The youngster likes to get on the ball a lot, and despite that, has only made two errors leading to a shot on goal, with none actually resulting in goals for the opposition.

Cisse is strong with his one-on-one abilities, winning 1.6 tackles per game and has managed to keep a whopping seven clean sheets in just 19 matches.

Who could Cisse replace at Aston Villa?

The centre-back position is conveniently one that Villa should be looking to improve this summer. While Emery will want to keep Ezri Konsa around, there have been question marks about the futures of Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres, for different reasons.

Emery is one to give youngsters a chance, and if Torres or Mings were to leave, Cisse could be given a first-team opportunity, with financial issues still a worry.

• Mings has played 963 minutes in the Premier League this season
• He has only kept three clean sheets

Mings is arguably on the decline, and his 6.73 Sofascore rating in the Premier League suggests his time may be up in B6.

At some point, he’ll need to be replaced, and with Cisse being on hot form, he could be the ideal man to fill his boots.