Aston Villa can count themselves lucky to have tied down Jhon Durán, one of the most exciting young strikers in the Premier League, to a new long-term contract.
The Colombian moved to the Birmingham-based club in January 2023 from the MLS where he played for Chicago Fire, his first stop following his move from his home country. Villa paid around £17 million for the then-18-year-old striker, who has grown in leaps and bounds under Unai Emery.
Thanks to his goals, Aston Villa have been able to keep their head above water in the 2024/25 season which has been tsking for them. Their participation in the new format of the UEFA Champions League which will see them participate in more games has necessitated the use of their squad and the 20-year-old has shown that he is one to be counted upon in this tasking season.
He has four goals in seven league games for Villa this season and six in 10 for the club in all competitions, placing him as their highest goalscorer. What’s amazing is that most of them have been from the bench, making him into a “super-sub” character that many teams will kill to have to help with the rigours of the 2024/25 season.
Details of the deal
The 20-year-old was close to leaving Villa Park in the summer following talks with Chelsea and West Ham United. He had agreed to personal terms with the latter, in fact, but will now see his journey in England continue with the historic Birmingham side for the next few seasons.
Durán has signed on until 2030, which means he could spend another six years making Villa fans happy. He is below Ollie Watkins in the pecking order at Villa but is believed to be a long-term replacement for the 28-year-old Englishman, who is believed to be in his final years at Villa Park. With this new deal and his showing in the past month, Emery can put less pressure on himself in case Watkins decides to move on to Arsenal, Liverpool or the other clubs that he has been linked with in the last few seasons.
What has been said about Durán
Sky Sports journalist Ron Walker says that the Colombian is no longer seen as a “promising talent” or “prospect”, but a full-blown Premier League striker following his performances for Villa.
“It says a lot that no one was surprised when Jhon Duran came off the bench, scored a stunning goal and delivered Aston Villa’s biggest European result in a generation last week [against Bayern Munich],” Walker said.
“It was poetic that Duran should be the man to score the winner.”
“It was only the 20-year-old’s 14th goal for the club. He almost left to join West Ham in the summer – and no one would have felt like Villa had made a huge mistake had he done so.”
“But since then, he has turned into one of the Premier League’s all-time super subs. He has scored three winners this season, against Everton, West Ham and Bayern, and played less than half an hour against each.”
“Villa beat off competition from around Europe to sign him in January 2023, and this season we’re seeing why.”
