Aston Villa manager Unai Emery must be delighted with his progress at the club in such short time, though losing their Europa Conference League semi-final against Olympiakos will have stung a man revered for his trophy success on the continent.
While so many players pulled their weight at Villa Park, Douglas Luiz was the metronomic heartbeat that made it all tick, with The Athletic's Jacob Tanswell saying that the Brazilian is "the player who binds Unai Emery’s principles, with and without the ball".
Had Arsenal succeeded with the three-part assault in 2022, seeing a third and final £25m bid rejected that August, it's patent that Emery's system wouldn't have found its groove – not to the same standard.
And it's a good thing too, for Leander Dendoncker was signed one month after that saga, and might have found himself serving in the 26-year-old's place had things panned out differently.
Leander Dendoncker's Villa career
Steven Gerrard's Aston Villa signed Dendoncker from Midlands rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers in a £13m deal in September 2022, having earned 124 appearances in the Premier League with the Old Gold.
Defensive midfield
193
12
4
Central midfield
68
9
2
Centre-back
65
4
2
Attacking midfield
3
0
1
Left midfield
1
0
0
A versatile and industrious player, the Belgian has been hailed as a "top player" in the past by erstwhile Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, but he's failed to impress for his current Premier League club.
Dendoncker only started nine matches in the English top flight across his first season in Villa colours, averaging a measly 1.7 successful duels per game, as per Sofascore.
The current campaign was far more fruitless, with just one start to his name before being loaned out to Napoli in January, who had the option to make the deal permanent but have not activated the clause, sending Dendoncker back to England.
Why Leander Dendoncker must be sold
Dendoncker is certainly not in Emery's plans going forward and given that Everton have expressed interest in pursuing a deal for the 29-year-old this week, according to Football Insider, it might be a good idea for Villa to cash in while they can.
Tanswell noted that there was a "disconnect" when Luiz played alongside Dendoncker earlier in the campaign. This was prior to Boubacar Kamara's season-ending ACL injury in February but such discordance in the midfield partnership was never going to bode well and it's understandable that he was shipped out to Napoli.
1.
Leander Dendoncker
£90k-per-week
2.
Matty Cash
£80k-per-week
3.
Douglas Luiz
£75k-per-week
3.
Emiliano Buendia
£75k-per-week
5.
Jacob Ramsey
£70k-per-week
Dendoncker is not one of Aston Villa's highest earners but he still takes home a pretty penny, eclipsing the likes of Luiz and Jacob Ramsey in salary.
Ramsey is only 22 years old and earns a wage that pretty accurately reflects his ability, but for Dendoncker to earn more than Luiz, the aforementioned heartbeat of Emery's high-flying system, is criminal, and he must be sold this summer to trim some fat from an immense squad of players.
Monchi plots Villa swoop for "seriously talented" £24m Watkins partner
Unai Emery’s side will need to bolster to deal with the rigours of Champions League football.
ByAngus Sinclair May 24, 2024
