Aston Villa are reportedly closing in on agreeing a new contract with Lamare Bogarde to secure his long-term future at the club.
The 20-year-old has impressed since he arrived at the club in 2020, going on to establish himself as a key figure for us at youth level, while loan stints at Bristol Rovers have been key steps in his ongoing development.
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Having trained and been a prominent figure in our pre-season so far this summer, an important decision is needed regarding his future, and it appears as though he’s set to stay with Unai Emery and the senior squad.
According to The Athletic, Bogarde is close to putting pen to paper on a new contract to commit his future, while it’s added that Emery wants him to stay at the club as he’ll offer depth and fight for minutes rather than be shipped out on loan again.
That’s a crucial decision from Villa as ultimately a loan spell can have major benefits in terms of offering regular playing time to gain valuable experience and develop as a player, while staying and having a limited role on the bench could disrupt that progress. Further, going back and forth between senior and youth level with us could also be a difficult challenge to successfully navigate.
Nevertheless, with speculation over Diego Carlos and his future at the club coupled with the lack of competition we currently have for that right-sided centre-half position behind Ezri Konsa, Bogarde could be in line for an important role, particularly after making such a positive impression in pre-season.
The expectation is that Villa will sign another defender if Carlos leaves and so Bogarde will likely remain in the same slot in the pecking order regardless, but if that is indeed the choice Villa opt for, it says a lot about Emery’s trust and belief in his potential, and both his suitability and adaptability to the role the Villa boss needs him to play.
Time will tell how the pieces fall into place, but off the back of impressing this summer, it looks as though our young Dutch defender, who importantly also has the versatility to play as a defensive midfielder too, will be sticking around this season and helping us compete across multiple competitions.