Aston Villa have had a summer to remember so far, with Unai Emery and Monchi bolstering the talent on show at Villa Park through their moves in the market.
The Spanish duo smashed the club record transfer fee to welcome Moussa Diaby to the Midlands in a deal worth £51.9m, as well as reuniting Emery with former player Pau Torres and capturing Youri Tielemans on a free transfer.
Following on from the highs of the 2022/23 campaign that was transformed by the former Arsenal boss, things are looking to be on a good route for the Villans, however the club could soon suffer their first blunder since the Spaniard’s arrival.
What’s the latest on Cameron Archer’s future at Aston Villa?
It wasn’t long ago that Emery gave a refreshing update on the status of academy striker Cameron Archer’s via BirminghamLive, during the club’s pre-season tour.
The manager spoke in reference to fellow young forward Jhon Duran when providing assurance over his plans to keep the promising duo at Villa Park for the season to come.
“He’s [Duran] a player we will need because he is our second striker with Cameron Archer and we have to use both as well as we have to give them chances to help us.”
Despite the reassurance delivered by the Spaniard, renowned journalist David Ornstein revealed on Wednesday that the dynamic youngster could be for “sale”, with the club “open” to his departure with “strong interest” noted.
How good is Cameron Archer?
Lauded by U23 scout Antonio Mango as being “undoubtedly the best finisher” in England’s U21 European Championship winning squad, Villa could be making a huge mistake in sanctioning the sale of Archer.
A product of the club’s academy, the Englishman – who has been valued at €10m (£9m) by CIES Football Observatory – made the decision to endeavour on a half-season loan spell in the Championship last term, with game time not sufficient enough for his development.
In 20 appearances for Middlesbrough, the striker contributed to 17 goals on their path to the play-offs, scoring 11 times and providing six assists in what was an instant impact at Riverside.
Described as “incredibly prolific” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Emery could not only lose a homegrown talent, but a player with gargantuan potential at a time where Ollie Watkins is only getting older and a successor will one day need to be identified.
With Watkins being Villa’s primary forward at present, the room is there for Archer to develop at his boyhood club next season, under a manager that has unearthed one of the best young talents in England, with his harvesting of Bukayo Saka most notable.
It would be a significant blunder for the claret and blues to part ways with the 21-year-old, who has shown evidence of the maturity he has added to his game by playing exceptionally at senior level, to elevate his raw talent.
The Villans are also in the process of completing the sale of fellow academy starlet Aaron Ramsey, in a move that is beneficial to the player, but an example that could come back to haunt Emery.
While there are a host of targets speculated to be wanted by Villa, there comes an instance where promoting homegrown talents could be the greater route to success, rather than a way to make profit.