In January, Donyell Malen exited Aston Villa to join AS Roma on an initial loan deal. Unai Emery has now spoken about the move, which has gone down well in Italy.
SportWitness recently covered the deal extensively, as the Italian secured the conditional obligation to sign the Dutchman.
Even though Roma are out of the Champions League spots, it’s become clear they will meet Aston Villa’s demands for Malen. The Friedkin ownership is convinced by his abilities, with the striker having scored seven goals in 11 league games.
He’s also attracted a lot of praise from Gian Piero Gasperini, whose system isn’t easy to adjust to. However, Malen has adapted to his tactics, solving Roma’s striker problems.
His parent club were in Italy on Thursday, playing against Bologna in the Europa League quarter-final. They picked up a 3-1 win, as Ollie Watkins scored in stoppage time to give them a cushion ahead of a crucial second leg.
Reason behind transfer clear
Emery spoke to Sky Italia after the game. While the tie was a point of discussion, he was also asked about Malen and why he was allowed to leave Aston Villa.
The Spaniard said – relayed byCorriere dello Sport: “Why didn’t I oppose Malen ‘s departure? The one with Roma was a good deal for us and for him. He wanted to play as a centre-forward, but he had little space because we’re getting along well with Watkins.”
Emery also expressed that he has no regrets about how things are going. He also said he happy seeing Malen impress.
“I would have liked to keep him, but he asked me to sell him. There was the opportunity to go to Roma and I’m happy for him, he’s an excellent player and I’m convinced he can have a great career at Roma.”
Aston Villa set for slight capital gain
Some sections of the Aston Villa fanbase might harbour regrets about Malen’s exit in January.
He would’ve been keen in playing at the World Cup and his performances at Roma has helped him impress Ronald Koeman. It also puts him in good stead ahead of the tournament, where he can look forward to making an impact.
Aston Villa paid about€26m in total to sign Malen from Borussia Dortmund. Roma’s obligation to buy stands at€25m, with a loan fee of €2m already paid.