Aston Villa have been forced to trade to sustain their success under Unai Emery in the last few years
Aston Villa's Johan Manzambi celebrates scoring against Tottenham
Aston Villa's Johan Manzambi already looks a smart signing
The CIES Football Observatory claims that the value of Aston Villa’s non-academy players has appreciated by £137 million over the past five years.
Four of those years have come under Unai Emery, who replaced Steven Gerrard in November 2022 before guiding the club to European qualification.
Under Emery, Villa have reached the Champions League twice, won the Europa League to end a 30-year trophy drought, and maintained impressive league form. Only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have earned more points since his appointment.
Villa’s battle with the Premier League and UEFA’s financial regulations is well documented, meaning the club have had to recruit cleverly under Emery to give him the tools he needs to sustain their success.
That was never more evident than last summer, when Villa lost more than half of the starting XI that featured against SC Freiburg in the Europa League final. Ten new signings were subsequently brought in to replace the high-profile departures.
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The success of the summer transfer window will only become clear in the months ahead, but Zion Suzuki, Nicolas Jackson and Johan Manzambi are proving to be excellent acquisitions, with further contributions expected across the squad, including from Joao Gomes and Ibrahim Mbaye.
Villa generated more than £300 million in sales last summer as Emery reshaped his squad, targeting younger players to reduce the average age of the group and bring down the wage bill.
The CIES Football Observatory reports that Villa’s non-academy assets have appreciated in value by more than £130m. The calculation considers the balance between transfer fees paid and received for players who have already been permanently sold, alongside the fees paid and current estimated transfer values of those still at the club.
Only two of the so-called ‘big six’ clubs, Manchester City and Chelsea, rank above Villa, while Manchester United recorded the largest depreciation among European clubs, at £342m.
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