With just one game remaining on Aston Villa’s pre-season schedule, youngster Jaden Philogene-Bidace will be hoping to continue to impress boss Dean Smith.
Villa have secured wins over Walsall, Bristol City and Crewe thus far, while a defeat at Stoke City was sandwiched in between as we continue to build fitness ahead of the new Premier League campaign.
READ MORE: Five talking points as Villa secure 3-0 win at Bristol City in pre-season clash
With a whole host of youngsters pushing to make a breakthrough at senior level, Philogene-Bidace is perhaps just ahead of the pack after making his senior debut late last season.
The 19-year-old would have taken a lot of confidence from that show of faith from Smith, and that has led to an impressive pre-season thus far.
Goals, assist and positive displays from Philogene-Bidace
The talented winger has bagged goals against Walsall and Bristol City, while his assist came in the former as he laid on a pass for Aaron Ramsey to dispatch into the back of the net.
His movement, awareness and positioning have all impressed in those moments, and in general, he has put in some positive performances as he tries to impress Smith and convince him to give him more opportunities this season.
With Emiliano Buendia arriving this summer and the expectation that Leon Bailey will too after the club confirmed an agreement has been reached with Bayer Leverkusen for a transfer, competition is going to be fierce in the final third at Villa this upcoming season.
Add to the mix Bertrand Traore and Anwar El Ghazi as well as Trezeguet when he returns from a serious injury while Jack Grealish could yet remain despite ongoing speculation over his future, Smith has numerous options and will have to find a balance to keep everyone happy.
With that in mind, it could prove to be difficult for Philogene-Bidace to get consistent and significant playing time if he stays rather than getting loaned out for the year, and so any time he is handed a chance to shine, he has to grab it.
So far so good in that sense as he has certainly been a bright spot in our pre-season schedule, and he’ll hope to put in one last reminder for Smith of his potential and talent when we face Sevilla this weekend.
Whether it’s a dynamic option off the bench or a squad player to give us depth and rotation with the cup competitions, Philogene-Bidace will hope he’s playing his way into the Villa side this season and what we can be sure of at this early stage is that he has the ability to knock on the door and make a strong claim to get minutes.
Two goals and an assist in pre-season so far for Jaden Philogene-Bidace ⭐️#avfc #UTV pic.twitter.com/hwkbFUvi5C
— Talk Villa (@thetalkvilla) August 2, 2021