As far as Aston Villa debuts go, Amadou Onana couldn’t have asked for much more after playing a pivotal role in our 2-1 win over West Ham Utd.
The 22-year-old summer signing from Everton wasted little time in making his mark, and that’s not just a reference to his fourth-minute goal that broke the deadlock and set us on our way to victory.
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Onana was a key recruit this transfer window, not only in helping to fill the void left behind by Douglas Luiz, albeit he is a different profile of player, but he addresses other key weaknesses in this team with his physical attributes.
Villa and Unai Emery had a clear strategy when it came to incomings this summer, as we looked for younger, more athletic and dynamic individuals who can help to continue to evolve our style of play and become more dominant with more control in games on a consistent basis.
That is where Onana excelled on Saturday evening at the London Stadium, as he showcased both sides to his game. On one hand, he’s a midfield destroyer with his ability to disrupt the opposition’s rhythm and passing to regain possession through winning duels or his intelligent positioning and awareness.
On the other side of that is his technical ability in possession, and that’s where his game will improve and develop under Emery, who will look to maximise and utilise his full potential in both phases.
In partnership with his compatriot Youri Tielemans, Onana was excellent in giving us a foothold and control against the Hammers, as he imposed himself on the game and added composure and sharpness to our passing in midfield. That in turn gave us a sense of cohesion and fluidity to our play, with defence turning into attack in a string of passes to enable us to counter with pace.
Speaking after the game, the Belgian international is convinced that Emery will take his game up through the levels, as his role will evolve and become more influential with us compared to his previous situation at Everton. Further, he went on to praise the Basque coach’s IQ and knowledge, and there is genuine excitement over what level of player Onana could develop into given how far some of his teammates have come under the same coach.
Onana ended our win this weekend with a goal, 97 percent passing accuracy, 15 contested duels, nine of which he won, while he won possession back on six occasions. Those were all team-leading numbers in those respective categories.
There is a long way to go this season and at times in certain games, we may well miss the creativity and flair of Luiz, and perhaps we’ll receive criticism for being a little too industrious in midfield having sacrificed some of that quality we had previously.
However, if Saturday’s performance was anything to go by, Onana helps make us a more robust, dynamic and commanding midfield presence on the pitch, and with the way of playing and structure that Emery demands from his players, it arguably is a better, and more effective, fit, for what the Villa boss is continuing to try and implement and perfect to make us as competitive as possible.
Both Onana and Tielemans have a fundamental role in that pivot of not only shielding the backline, but giving us that balance and connection to our attacking players. The early signs were undoubtedly promising, and it will of course continue to improve as the season goes on.