Aston Villa travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace in the final game of the Premier League season, presenting Unai Emery with the opportunity to unleash one rarely-seen talent.
It’s been a phenomenal season for Aston Villa who on Tuesday, confirmed their status as a Champions League club by securing a fourth-place finish.
Unai Emery’s side partied hard after hearing the news that Manchester City had beaten Tottenham, subsequently confirming that the Lilywhites could not improve on their fifth-place position.
While the Villans will be looking ahead to the new challenges that the 2024/25 season will present, one final hurdle remains this term, with Crystal Palace away from home being the last fixture of the campaign.
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Emery will have some decisions to make regarding squad selection with nothing to play for in the last game, which could open the door to a number of academy players who are waiting to impress in the first team.
Omari Kellyman could feature for Aston Villa against Crystal Palace
One young player who has featured sporadically for Villa this season is Omari Kellyman, who is a shining light in the U21s side.
The 18-year-old has featured 16 times for the U21s this term, scoring eight goals and claiming one assist, seeing him pave the way to take steps towards becoming a regular around Emery’s side.
Once lauded as being an ‘absolute dream’ to manage by Josh Butler, the local recruitment manager at his former club Derby County, Kellyman secured three senior appearances for Villa this campaign, collecting minutes in the Europa Conference League and the Premier League.
It’s clear that Emery sees the talent in Kellyman, with the teenager making the bench 10 times in the league for the first team this term, with there now being the perfect opportunity for the Bodymoor Heath gem to show his worth against Crystal Palace.
Omari Kellyman could replace Morgan Rogers against Crystal Palace
As well as having nothing to play for with fourth place already secured, Emery could hand youngsters the chance to impress as a result of some injury woes in his favoured XI.
In his pre-match press conference, the Spaniard revealed that Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans and Matty Cash will join the long-term absentees as being unavailable for the last game of the season.
The injury of Rogers in particular could present Kellyman with the opportunity to feature against Palace, with the two taking up similar positions.
The teenager is deployed primarily as an attacking midfielder, an area that the January arrival has recently excelled in under Emery, playing behind the striker to use his ball-carrying strengths to full effect.
In a scouting report, talent scout Jacek Kulig described Kellyman as having the ‘power and directness’ to drive forward ‘towards the opposition box’, traits noticeable in Rogers’ playing style.
With resources low in attack, this afternoon could be the ideal chance for the Englishman to show the manager just how good he is against Premier League opposition, with the summer set to be crucial to young players ahead of the 2024/25 season.
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