Aston Villa will once again look to compete on multiple fronts next season, and Unai Emery will be looking for contributions across his squad to help us achieve our objectives.
Much will depend on what happens in the next few months in the summer transfer window, as ultimately there could still be outgoings and incomings that influence how impactful our current options will be.
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One player who will be looking to take that next step and deliver on a more consistent basis though is Jacob Ramsey, as he’s entering a critical period in his career, particularly in terms of how it might influence his future at Villa.
The 24-year-old has become an easy transfer talking point in recent times, as given he’s an Academy product, should the club choose to sell him, he would represent pure profit when it comes to addressing our ongoing PSR concerns.
This summer has been no different as he’s been linked with an exit, but the speculation hasn’t perhaps been as loud as it has previously, and so it’s hoped our homegrown star will be with us next season and it’s time for him to deliver in a more prominent way.
Injuries have certainly disrupted his progression and development, and although the increased competition for places is a good thing for Villa as we look to raise standards and levels, Ramsey has suffered slightly as a result as he hasn’t always been a fixture in the side.
His attributes and qualities have been on full display, as aside from his goalscoring or creative threat, his ability to carry the ball with pace has been a key aspect of Unai Emery’s preferred way of playing, while he has excellent tactical and positional awareness to occupy good areas of the attacking third to cause problems for the opposition.
Add in his work ethic to make an important contribution defensively, this isn’t a piece that questions his value for us, but more so how he now needs to tap into that talent and potential and unlock it entirely.
In the 2020/21 campaign, Ramsey bagged just the one assist in 27 games as he continued to make his breakthrough. He followed that with six goals and an assist in 35 outings the season after.
Then came his most productive year, largely thanks to the arrival of Emery half-way through the campaign, as he registered six goals and eight assists in 38 appearances.
The 2023/24 season was blighted by injury as he only made 21 appearances and contributed one goal and two assists, while this past season he had four goals and seven assists in 46 games.
Morgan Rogers has deservedly received plenty of plaudits for his impact since joining us in January 2024 and has left Ramsey in his shadow to an extent, while the additions of Donyell Malen, Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford gave us more competition for places in the final third.
Provided Ramsey stays this summer and depending on who we bring in to strengthen the squad, there is a clearer path for him to be a regular starter again, but he has to start delivering more consistently to show he’s as good as we all know he can be.
Naturally, the most important thing for him is to stay healthy and injury-free, as more often than not when he gets a run of games and starts to find his rhythm and pace, he can be decisive in front of goal.
In turn, it’s hoped that he has a strong pre-season and is raring to go to start the new campaign in August, and if he’s able to get off to a strong start and contribute right away, that will surely do wonders for his confidence and belief in taking his game to the next level, and he’ll undoubtedly be a critical option for Emery to have at his disposal as we look to compete across four competitions.
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