**Aston Villa** have had a rough summer. **Youri Tielemans**, **Morgan Rogers**, **Lucas Digne**, and **Ezri Konsa** have all committed their futures to other big clubs across Europe. Six signings arrived through the door before the opening matchday of the **Premier League**, but last week was a severe gut punch.
The _Villans_ were four goals behind and a man down after only forty minutes of their match against **Brighton**. They have never failed to qualify for continental competition since **Unai Emery** came into the dugout in November 2022, but that excellent record appears to be under threat this campaign.
**Villa Park** is crying out for another spark, and their latest acquisition could be that very man.
·**Jackson joins back up with Emery**
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As Villa’s spine has been ripped up, the club have been coming to terms with another major exit.
**Ollie Watkins** has been an iconic figure for the _Villans_, never failing to put up double-digit goals in the **Premier League** across six seasons at **Villa Park**. He has entered the ‘100’ club for Villa, became their Players' Player of the Season, was nominated for the PFA Team of the Year, and helped put an end to the 30-year trophy drought for a major honour— all under the guidance of the Basque boss.
But all things have their appointed time and place.
Now 30 years of age, Watkins appears to be open to a change of scene to Saudi Arabia. He was missing from the matchday squad against **Brighton** last Sunday despite injuries to **Brian Madjo** and **Tammy Abraham**. Emery indicated that the talismanic forward had made himself unavailable for the trip to the **Amex Stadium**, saying he could only comment on the player’s absence with silence.
Villa needed a replacement to lead the line, and the club plucked for the services of **Nicolas Jackson**. They have agreed to bring in the forward from **Chelsea** for a fee of £65 million, establishing a new club record transfer signing after the £59.5 million outlay for **Johan Manzambi** from **Freiburg**.
He is a familiar face for Emery, who helped the 25-year-old to settle into Spanish football when he left his native Senegal for life at **Villarreal**. Jackson did not properly break into the first team until the final months of his time with the _Yellow Submarine_, but he could not deny the impact of his old boss.
_“He (Emery) was a big factor when I arrived in Spain. He’s been very important to me since the beginning; he’s always asking about my family. He developed me in Villarreal, and I’m very happy to be here and working for him again.”_
Jackson has been the unfortunate victim of circumstance that is the chaos at **Stamford Bridge**.
Only moving into a central forward role in the final months of his time at **Villarreal**, he was forced to learn to lead the line on the fly during the 2023/24 season under **Mauricio Pochettino**. His quality was clear, and a sharp start to the 2024/25 campaign indicated the player was continuing to improve.
[Embed from Getty Images](https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2173516595)
But a muscular injury produced a disrupted second half of the season. **Liam Delap** and **Joao Pedro** were then purchased in the summer, and he was only set to stay with the side after a hamstring injury for the Englishman at the end of August. Disillusioned with his treatment by the club, Jackson pushed through with a loan spell at **Bayern Munich**, and he remained surplus to requirements at **Chelsea**.
Jackson, who is no stranger to seeing red, certainly appreciates receiving love from those around him. Being in the presence of a head coach he trusts could reignite his fortunes in England in a big way.
·**What will Jackson bring to the Villans?**
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Jackson was signed for £32 million by **Chelsea** in the summer of 2023 as a promising player with tools that required refinement. He had to work on his heading and movement in the penalty area, and even at his best, the attacker was never a ruthless finisher. Having been guaranteed goals by Watkins for the last six seasons, that weakness will be a talking point that lingers in the minds of Villa fans.
But the brilliance of Watkins was never just about goals. He also demonstrated outstanding work ethic, was willing to work the channels and proved himself to be a well-rounded central forward.
The same could be said of Jackson. The 25-year-old has the ability to rattle defences with the volume, variety and speed of his channel running. He combines that trait with a capacity to take on defenders with creative carries— posing problems to even the likes of **William Saliba** and **Ibrahima Konate**.
[Embed from Getty Images](https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2149316152)
He also has the technique to take on the responsibility of receiving the ball with his back to goal and was capable of connecting with teammates with creative, clean touches. A support striker who can drift comfortably into wide spaces suits the system Villa have crafted with a cast of narrow attackers.
Villa are looking towards the future with many of the incomings for their squad, but they will want to try to be competitive in the here and now. For a club that clearly can only compete so far for talent in the transfer market, Jackson is certainly one of the better options they could have hoped to pick up.