Aston Villa forward Jhon Duran was back at Bodymoor Heath on Tuesday, as he returned for pre-season training after his extended break this summer.
Despite playing a limited role for Colombia at the Copa America, the 20-year-old was given the same time off as the likes of Emiliano Martinez, Ezri Konsa and Ollie Watkins.
READ MORE: Crucial boost as influential Villa trio finally return for pre-season
That quartet all reported back for pre-season training on Tuesday morning, and it remains to be seen if they’ll be available for our penultimate pre-season friendly of the summer against Athletic Bilbao.
As seen in the image below though, Duran was back doing gym work at the training ground to start the week, and his presence has unsurprisingly sparked a reaction from Villa supporters given the intense speculation over his future this summer, as well as his antics off the pitch.
👀 Jhon Duran back at BH…#avfc #UTV 🟣🔵 pic.twitter.com/8o3ruXVHOC
— Talk Villa (@thetalkvilla) August 6, 2024
Villa boss Unai Emery left the door open for Duran to reintegrate back into the squad when speaking to the media in the USA as our pre-season tour concluded, with much discussion taking place over his future with us following an interview the Colombian international gave last month where he welcomed interest being shown in him and expressed his desire for it to become something more concrete.
Further, he was seen making a West Ham Utd gesture on Instagram while being linked with a move to join the Hammers, and so it’s fair to say that he hasn’t left Villa fans impressed this summer.
Time will tell if it’s simply a case of being professional and training with the club as expected until a transfer materialises, or if he is indeed being given another chance by Emery and his teammates to make a positive mark and cut out the nonsense around his impact on the pitch.
Emery’s matchday squad on Wednesday night will perhaps give us a clearer indication if Duran is left out but the others who returned this week feature, but whether he stays or goes, the talented young striker would be well advised to keep his head down, work hard and focus on his football rather than interest being shown in him or any other distractions.