Aston Villa winger Moussa Diaby has had a trialling first season in the Premier League, with his performance against Brighton telling of his recent struggles.
Unai Emery and Monchi shattered Aston Villa’s record transfer fee to welcome Moussa Diaby to the Midlands in the summer however, the Frenchman is yet to live up to his pricetag.
It would be incredibly harsh to judge the 24-year-old merely on his first season in the Premier League, a hurdle many struggle to overcome although, his recent performances have raised alarm bells.
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Last week, the Villans fell short to Olympiacos and Brighton, two fixtures that Diaby failed to impress in when given the chance, leading to The Athletic journalist Gregg Evans communicating his worry with the winger.
The worrying trend spotted with Moussa Diaby
Speaking on the 1874 podcast in reaction to Villa’s 1-0 defeat to Brighton at the Amex on Sunday, Evans expressed what he believes is the issue Emery is facing with Diaby.
“He’s not playing with any confidence, is he? I’ve spoken to lots of wingers over the years and they say when their confidence isn’t there, they don’t want to take on the man because they feel like they’re always going to lose the ball.”
Against Olympiacos and Brighton last week, the Frenchman attempted just one dribble over the two fixtures, via Sofascore, completing zero to reinforce Evans’ point of his confidence drop.
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The journalist explained that the former Bayer Leverkusen star requires more than just goal contributions to boost his self-belief, which was a statement portrayed against Olympiacos as he scored, yet was largely ineffective.
“He’s not playing with any confidence and, even if he wasn’t scoring goals, I don’t think that’s the key for him.
“I think it’s just good performances, setting up good chances, creating opportunities for his teammates, he’s not really doing any of it at the moment.”
It’s certainly a cause for concern for Emery, who has seen rare glimpses of the France international’s full ability across his first season, placing emphasis on his need to level up next term.
How many goals has Moussa Diaby scored for Aston Villa?
Since arriving in the summer for a fee of £51.9m from the Bundesliga champions, Diaby has secured 51 appearances for Villa, where he has scored 10 goals in all competitions, providing eight assists, via Transfermarkt.
While the numbers don’t make for particularly bad reading, the concern comes from the 24-year-old’s dip in form after making a fast start.
Half of Diaby’s six goals in the Premier League came in the opening 10 fixtures, seeing him dropped down to the bench midway through the season as his form in the final third dried up.
On the 1874 podcast, Evans explained that there is now a need for the attacker to have another fast start in the 2024/25 campaign to avoid his career at Villa sporting the narrative of ‘what could have been’.
“He’s going to have to hit the ground running next season to give his Villa career any kind of liftoff and the kickstart that he needs.
“He looked so good at the start and it’s just faded away sadly.”
There is still a significant part for the summer arrival to play this campaign for the Villans, with the time and chance there for him to improve under the guidance of Emery.
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