Aston Villa Have Wasted Millions as Star Fails to Impress Emery

Ian Maatsen made his first Premier League start for Aston Villa on Saturday afternoon against Crystal Palace, but produced a disappointing performance that saw him hooked after 69 minutes, with his signing looking increasingly like a bad investment from the West Midlands club.
The defender was acquired for £37.5 million in the summer, and was expected to oust Lucas Digne as Villa’s first choice left-back. However, Emery has opted for the Frenchman over the Dutchman throughout this season so far, with Maatsen limited mostly to short cameos off the bench.
The former Borussia Dortmund loanee was granted an opportunity in today’s home game against Palace, and failed to impress Emery, as he was substituted after being lucky to avoid a sending off. With Digne replacing him and delivering a fine 20-minute cameo, Maatsen’s prospects certainly don’t look good at Villa Park.
Maatsen Signing a Waste of Money
Digne remains first choice while Moreno thrives at Forest
After an exceptional six-month loan spell at Dortmund last season, Maatsen was an in-demand man this summer. Chelsea were intent on selling to ease PSR restrictions, and Villa emerged with a substantial offer for the 22-year-old.
The West Midlanders opted to move Alex Moreno on to make way for Maatsen, shipping the Spaniard out to Nottingham Forest. Moreno has established himself as Forest’s first choice left-back, thriving at the City Ground, while 31-year-old Digne has retained his place in Emery’s starting eleven, leaving Maatsen desperate for minutes on the bench.
While there may have been a plan to slowly integrate the ex-Chelsea man and make him succeed Digne in the long-term, he’d certainly have hoped to have made his first Premier League start before late November. On top of this, the optics of the way in which things unfolded for Maatsen against Palace weren’t good.
The Netherlands international made no tackles, one interception and created just one chance against the Eagles. He was also lucky to avoid being dismissed for hauling down Ismaila Sarr just minutes before he was hooked – an incident Mike Dean described as ‘100%’ a red card on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday.
Evidently a bad afternoon for Maatsen, it’s reasonable to question Villa’s decision to spend such a significant sum on the player.
Maatsen’s Statistics vs Palace Minutes Played 69 Accurate Passes 39/43 (91%) Key Passes 1 Successful Dribbles 1/1 (100%) Tackles Won 0 Interceptions 1 Ground Duels Won 1/2 (50%)
All Statistics via FotMob – correct as of 23/11/2024