Aston Villa have little time to relax following the conclusion of the 2023/24 season.
The club enjoyed an incredible campaign culminating in Champions League qualification, meaning their attention will soon turn to improving their squad for next campaign.
Everyone associated with Aston Villa will want to look forward to potential incomings to bolster their ranks, but there are likely to be one or two notable departures this summer too.
That is because – even with Champions League football – Villa need to be careful not to breach Premier League and UEFA spending rules.
Unai Emery and president of football operations, Monchi, will want to remain in control of which players it is that are sold to balance the books, though, and one player linked with an exit has been warned not to repeat the mistake of another former player.
Jhon Duran warned against following Carney Chukwuemeka to Chelsea
That player is Jhon Duran, with the striker rumoured to be a target for Chelsea again this summer after their surprise January pursuit of the forward in January.
The 20-year-old only joined the club in January 2022 but was a target for the London club in the winter as he played second fiddle to Ollie Watkins at Villa Park.
The Colombian may be tempted to make the move to Stamford Bridge if Chelsea reignite their interest but Sky Sports journalist Dan Bardell has issued Duran with a stark reminder of another young player who made the move from Villa to Chelsea in Carney Chukwuemeka.
Bardell posted on ‘X’: “Jhon Duran and his agent would do well to look at Carney Chukwuemeka.”
Chukwuemeka was very highly thought of at Villa but left to join Chelsea for £20 million in August 2022 at 18 years of age having made just 14 Premier League appearances.
Since that move two years ago, the midfielder has made just 23 top flight appearances for Chelsea according to Transfermarkt, with the club finishing below Villa in both seasons.
Few places better for Duran to develop than Aston Villa
Whilst it should be caveated that Chukwuemeka’s Chelsea career has been heavily disrupted by injuries, his story is still one that should serve as a warning to any youngsters who think the grass is greener elsewhere.
Realistically, there was no reason for the England under-20 international to make the move to Stamford Bridge before he had established himself at Villa.
The move was far too early in Chukwuemeka’s career.
Rather than staying at a club on an upwards trajectory that could develop his talents he joined a Chelsea side in disarray whose approach seems to be to sign as many young talents as possible without any plan on how to integrate them.
Duran is at risk at falling for the same trap and should be patient as he continues to improve and learn under Emery after his £18 million move from Chicago Fire.
With Champions League football, there should be plenty of opportunities for Duran to add to his eight Villa goals so far and he would be wise to stay in the stable environment at Villa Park rather than the manager-less chaos at Chelsea.
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