Aston Villa forward Leon Bailey has provided brilliant insight into the squad mentality as he embraces the competition in the group.
The 26-year-old has six goals and three assists in 13 appearances so far this season, and despite that impressive return, he hasn’t always been a regular starter thus far.
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Even though Emiliano Buendia suffered a serious injury on the eve of the new campaign and Jacob Ramsey has been out injured too, the likes of Nicolo Zaniolo and Youri Tielemans have added competition for places in the Villa squad to give Unai Emery options.
We’ve already seen how important that is with our fixture schedule this year, and it’s crucial that we continue to get contributions from everyone to ensure we can compete for silverware.
Despite still battling for a regular spot in the Villa XI, Bailey has shown an ideal mentality and sacrifice by insisting that he understands the need for rotation, and he trusts Emery’s judgement to do what is best for the team, which is ultimately the most important aspect.
“We have a lot of games coming up, a lot of games,” he said, as quoted by The Express and Star. “It is important to rotate and it is the manager’s decision, at the end of the day, to decide what is best for the team.
“It is always important to make sure when you are called upon you are ready. That is the life of a footballer.
“I have been in the game some years now, so you have to learn. It is hard for a lot of players but you just have to be strong.
“When you believe in your ability and know what you are capable of doing, you just have to wait for your opportunity and be ready.”
The Jamaican international has had a positive week after scoring against West Ham Utd and then finding the back of the net at AZ Alkmaar as well as providing an assist, and so we’ll see if he gets the nod to start against Luton Town on Sunday.
He’s been a key figure in Emery’s plans since the Spaniard was appointed, as although he wasn’t as consistent as we’d like in the final third, he evidently still did an important job as part of the collective tactical performance that ensured the Villa boss had trust in him.
If Bailey can continue to add goals and assists to his game, he’ll undoubtedly grow into a more fundamental role for Villa, but it’s great to still hear him have such a humble and team-first approach, rather than hint at unrest over his lack of minutes. He’ll no doubt be desperate to play, but the team and results are the most important thing, and Villa are in a great place as things stand.
