While Aston Villa boast strength in depth this season, it’s proven to be more difficult for some to get a consistent look-in from Unai Emery thus far.
For Kosta Nedeljkovic, that has certainly been the case, as the 18-year-old has been limited to just six appearances across all competitions, while he has now been left out of seven of our last eight Premier League matchday squads.
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The early signs were promising, as the talented youngster made a big impression in pre-season, while he featured in our first three league games of the campaign off the bench.
However, he has struggled for minutes since, and our exit from the Carabao Cup certainly didn’t help his situation as he was an ever-present in our first two games in the competition, and looked set for a significant role had we advanced further.
While he will have benefited from being within the group and learning from Emery, his coaching staff and the more experienced players in the squad in training each day, Nedeljkovic also needs to play consistently to put that into action, improve and develop his game to a higher level.
With that looking increasingly unlikely at Villa this season, Emery conceded that there is a possibility that the Serbian international could move out on loan in January.
“Maybe,” he told reporters earlier this week, as per BirminghamLive. “We are in December and there are 20 days more or less to get to January. But of course we are going to make the best decision for the team and for him as well and for his process. Now the decision is not done.
“Kosta is a young player – he played some matches at the beginning of the season, but there is still work to do and adaptation for everything to have. In the Premier League, the tactical idea to manage as well and playing with confidence. This is the way he has to do and this is a process we are doing.”
Since Matty Cash returned from injury, it has become harder to secure a more prominent role in that right-back role, but as we’ve seen in recent weeks, Emery is still more inclined to shift Ezri Konsa across and bring in Diego Carlos in the middle if he has to change things. There’s a sense that perhaps that window of opportunity has come and gone to give Nedeljkovic a run in the team.
There have also been a few games where Lamare Bogarde has been given the nod ahead of Nedeljkovic, and so it’s been a shame that we haven’t seen more of the promising talent as he has played with positive intent, energy and intensity every time he has entered the pitch, which in turn has made an impression on the Villa faithful.
That in turn would suggest that Emery is still not entirely convinced from a tactical perspective, as Nedeljkovic continues his adaptation and integration into the side to provide what the Villa boss exactly wants, but it’s difficult to change that opinion if he isn’t given a chance on the pitch.
A loan move would arguably make sense for all concerned with that in mind, and while it had been hoped we would have seen more of the Serbian defender by now, he’ll hopefully still have a big future with us as there is evidently a real talent there waiting to fulfil his full potential. That makes it fundamentally important that if he is indeed sent out on loan, he goes to a good fit both in terms of playing time and style of play, which will set him up for a run at being Villa’s long-term right-back.