'Loan raider' Donyell Malen continues to prove himself at Aston Villa | OneFootball

This past January has seen an incredibly successful influx of talent brought in to Aston Villa. Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford received a lot of the early attention. The player on loan from Manchester United in particular was always going to see a lot of media attention, especially as an England international again under Thomas Tuchel. As another attacking option, the Dutchman from Borussia Dortmund has shown his quality, particularly in the latter parts of March and throughout April.

Until lately, the addition of Donyell Malen has largely gone under the radar. After scoring for his third game in a row, that is no longer the case. As described by known writer Henry Winter in his own personal Substack blog, one of the three 'loan raiders' is starting to find his footing at AVFC.

For someone who is in a position of needing to produce more or less each time he steps foot on the pitch, he's overdelivering at the moment. Yes, the goals have been a spectacular aspect. His attitude and then ability to impact when not being given the initial go from the opening whistle make his latest performances that much more impressive.

Ideal personality for current Aston Villa situation

Naturally, everyone who doesn't play or come on as a substitute wishes they could get an increased run on the field. Anyone at this level is going to back themselves to be in every starting XI. Being able to not let selfish pride become a distracting feature of the team and then still contribute in a limited role is something that can't be seen or said of a lot of athletes.

Donyell's job is to make Emery's decision as difficult as possible and force him to either select him or want to turn to him immediately when things aren't going well during the run of play. Aston Villa are looking to finish in the top five in the Premier League and advance against PSG in the Champions League. Even if the Dutchman isn't playing from the start, expect to notice when he enters the fray.