Unai Emery is giving £40m Aston Villa player until January to prove his worth in the squad as Chelsea lurk

Add as preferred source on Google

• EXCLUSIVE from Graeme Bailey

Aston Villa enjoyed a productive summer transfer window.

The West Midlanders brought in seven new signings, outlaying a total spend of £148m, including the statement arrival of Amadou Onana.

Aston Villa also raised a healthy £122m in player sales, which helped to keep them in line with Profit and Sustainability regulations.

They were close to selling another key asset in Jhon Duran but he remained at the club despite strong interest from Chelsea and West Ham United.

We can now exclusively reveal the latest on where he stands in Unai Emery’s eyes.

• READ MORE: Aston Villa could now sign ‘one of the best strikers in the world’ for free in 2025

Unai Emery will give Jhon Duran until Janaury to prove himself

TBR Football understands that Unai Emery is giving Jhon Duran until January to prove he has a future at the club after impressing in the early weeks of the new season.

Villa held talks with numerous clubs about Duran during the summer after they decided he was surplus to requirements.

Chelsea and West Ham both agreed terms in principle with the player, but a deal could not be brokered with either team.

The Colombian had a falling out with Emery last season, and whilst Villa were open to his departure they always believed his value was close to £40million – but nobody was willing to meet those terms.

Duran has since scored twice in three substitute appearances but TBR understands that Emery has been impressed with the South American’s attitude, which he believes has improved somewhat over the summer.

Aston Villa have to keep Jhon Duran

Duran has already proved that he’s more than capable of acting as the supporting striker to Ollie Watkins and in fact, there’s a case to be made that he deserves to start given the form of each.

Unless a crazy offer worth in excess of £60m arrives, there’s no justification for allowing the 20-year-old to leave mid-season, especially with the congested fixture list.