One Aston Villa gem has signed a Villa Park contract which the club seemingly decided against posting on social media.
Unai Emery linked with surprise Aston Villa exit
It has been an unusual start to the Premier League season for Villa and Unai Emery, who finally picked up their first three points of the season at the sixth time of asking on the weekend.
After falling behind to Fulham, Villa scored their first home league goals of the campaign to win 3-1 and move out of the relegation zone.
Former transfer chief Monchi has also left the Midlands, and now, Emery is being linked with a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, who are on the search for a new manager after parting ways with Laurent Blanc.
Following Monchi’s exit, Emery was asked last week if he is more committed than ever to Villa, to which he said: “More speculation? I know it’s a different speculation. The reality is we drew and in the league we are not performing well.
“We have to work and work hard. With the players I have meetings after the game and talk about how we want to be, tactically and with the demands we have.”
Emery added: “We are starting the season with the problems we had, the problems before, with the transfer window. Some players joined us late. We are trying to recover our performance.
“Now we are a different team, our emotions and our emotional moments are becoming better. I will want to show how we’ve improved in everything.”
Away from the speculation, though, Aston Villa have moved quietly to secure the services of a potential future star.
Aston Villa teenager pens first professional contract
It was announced on Aston Villa’s website on Tuesday that young defender Finlay Barnard has signed his first professional contract.
The club said they are pleased the U18 ace has committed his future at Villa Park after agreeing scholarship terms having signed over the summer Tottenham.
The update wasn’t posted on Villa’s X social media, so it is news that may have gone under the radar.
Academy Manager Mark Harrison said: “Finlay joined us in July at 16 years of age from Tottenham Hotspur. He is a left-sided defender who plays mainly at centre-back, but can also play at left-back. He is a very competitive defender who can manage the ball technically well.
“We have been really pleased with how Finlay has settled in and integrated into the Under-18s squad, becoming a regular starter. We look forward to seeing how he develops over the next few years.”
A versatile defender, Barnard will be looking to breakthrough into the first-team setup over the coming years, and continuing to impress Harrison will only help his case.
