Swansea City: January 2020 Aston Villa agreement still defies logic | OneFootball

Borja Baston's move to Aston Villa in January 2020 proved a bizarre call

Swansea City supporters won't have fond memories of Borja Baston's time at the club, and they're not the only set of supporters who failed to see the Spaniard at his best.

Baston was Swansea's record signing when he joined the club in the summer of 2016 from Atlético Madrid after an impressive season on loan at Eibar, but his time in south Wales was far from straightforward.

In total, Baston spent three-and-half years as a Swans player, although he made just 41 appearances thanks to a number of loan spells away, and he was far from prolific in front of goal.

He scored just seven goals, with six of them coming within the opening two months of the 2019/20 season, but that form was enough to seal a surprise move to the Premier League with Aston Villa.

Borja Baston's move to Aston Villa still defies logic

After spending the 2017/18 and 2018/19 campaigns on loan away from Swansea, Baston made a surprise return to SA1 ahead of the 2019/20 season, and it initially went well for the Spaniard.

He scored six Championship goals through August and September, helping his side to the top of the table at certain points, but he soon began to struggle.

Baston was dropped for Sam Surridge and struggled for minutes, and when Rhian Brewster arrived on loan from Liverpool in January 2020, the writing was on the wall for his time at the club.

With his contract set to expire at the end of the season, he was allowed to leave on a free transfer, and Premier League side Aston Villa took over the remaining months on his contract to sign him on a short-term deal.

It was deadline day and Villa were battling relegation, so it was clearly a panic buy from Dean Smith as he looked to keep the club in the top-flight, but it didn't make it any less baffling.

Baston had been struggling for minutes in the Championship, so it was unclear why Smith thought he'd make an impact in the Premier League, and his time at Villa Park went as most people expected.

He made just two appearances from the bench, totalling 16 minutes, and he was left out of the matchday squad for Villa's final seven games of the season after Project Restart, despite the fact they were fighting for their lives.

Unsurprisingly, Baston left upon the expiry of his short-term deal and headed back to Spain, bringing down the curtain on what was an unsuccessful venture into English football.

Borja Baston is now plying his trade in Mexico

After leaving Villa in 2020, Baston spent a number of years in his homeland playing for the likes of Leganes and Real Oviedo, but he sealed a surprise move to Mexican top-flight side Pachuca in the summer of 2024.

Things don't seem to have quite gone to plan for the 32-year-old in Mexico, and he's played a bit-part role, making just nine appearances and failing to find the back of the net - a statistic that may not surprise Swansea and Aston Villa supporters.

The Spaniard is out of contract with Pachuca at the end of the season, and he's set for an uncertain future, a long way from his days as a Premier League player.

Baston showed glimpses of what he was capable of at Swansea, and it's clear from his time at Eibar that there is a player there, but the Jack Army and Villa supporters won't have fond memories of his time in the English pyramid, and Smith's decision to bring him to Villa Park in January 2020 proved a baffling one.