Aston Villa have revealed the majority of the squad heading to the USA for our pre-season tour this week, and there was a double boost with Emiliano Buendia and Jacob Ramsey both part of the travelling group.
While the club will likely confirm a full squad list soon as we also await the return of the final few players who were given an extended break following their international commitments over the summer, this was the clearest indication yet as to who we can expect to see in action over the next week.
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Villa face Columbus Crew on Sunday morning, before games against RB Leipzig and Club America on August 1 and 3 respectively in what promises to be a busy and testing few days as we ramp up our preparations for the new Premier League campaign next month.
Our summer signings were all expected to be on the plane as they continue their adaptation process and settle into the squad, while the likes of John McGinn and Youri Tielemans are now back after their break following EURO 2024.
However, there was an important double boost as seen in the images below, with both Buendia and Ramsey pictured on the plane heading Stateside, as they now look set to step up their recovery from injury and feature in our upcoming pre-season outings to regain match fitness and sharpness.
So far…Morgan Rogers, Jacob Ramsey, Kaine Kesler-Hayden, Matty Cash, Ian Maatsen, Kosta Nedeljkovic, James Wright, Alex Moreno, Amadou Onana, Lewis Dobbin, Lucas Digne, Robin Olsen, Leander Dendoncker, Diego Carlos, Pau Torres, Youri Tielemans, Joe Gauci, Ross Barkley, Cameron… pic.twitter.com/Wtxmq81nXC
— Talk Villa (@thetalkvilla) July 24, 2024
That will give Unai Emery and his coaching staff a huge lift given the importance of the attacking duo in our side, and after such lengthy stints on the sidelines, with Buendia missing the entire campaign last year while Ramsey was limited to just 21 appearances across all competitions, it will not only be a morale boost for them but also for the rest of the squad.
Ollie Watkins, Ezri Konsa, Emiliano Martinez and perhaps Jhon Duran will likely join up with the rest of the players during the course of the USA tour, while there is still the expectation that we could see further outgoings and incomings in the next week or two.
For now though, it’s hoped that both Buendia and Ramsey are fit enough to feature and will be available to receive valuable minutes as they increase their workload, as having the pair back at Emery’s disposal will be vital for us as we look to build on last season and compete for major honours this year.