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‘Exceptional’…Darren Bent says no-one’s talking about how good 27-year-old Aston Villa player has been
Darren Bent has suggested that one Aston Villa player has completely gone under the radar this term, and would be in contention for his signing of the season in the Premier League.
Unai Emery‘s men have been one of the stories of the campaign so far. The Villans are very much in Premier League title contention. Few would have imagined that Villa could reach that level before a ball was kicked, let alone after they lost 5-1 to Newcastle on the opening day.
Pau Torres made his Aston Villa debut on that day at St James’ Park, coming on just after the half-hour mark due to the serious injury sustained by Tyrone Mings.
Darren Bent lauds Aston Villa signing Pau Torres
It seemed to take the Spaniard a bit of time to get up to speed in the Premier League. But the 27-year-old has quickly become a key man for Emery’s side, which is hardly surprising given that they worked together at Villarreal.
Darren Bent was speaking on about the idea of Cole Palmer being amongst the signings of the season due to his form for Chelsea. And while listing off some of the other contenders, he suggested that the defender has to be given a lot of credit.
“[Palmer] is, but there’s been a few who’ve been really good signings this season. Don’t get me wrong, what he’s done this season has been fantastic,” he said.
“But listen, we forgot about James Maddison, van de Ven, centre-halve for Spurs, even Vicario, the goalkeeper, been good. Now Declan Rice has been brilliant for Arsenal, but the money you pay for it, people go, well you expect it for £100 million.
“Szoboszlai, he was unbelievable for Liverpool. Kudus, West Ham, he would be my one. And someone who’s probably gone under the radar who people haven’t really spoken about, Pau Torres. He has been exceptional by the way.”
Villans’ rise should worry many at the top of the Premier League table
Villa did not make wholesale changes in the summer. They welcomed a handful of new signings. And yet, they have gone from being on the periphery of a relegation battle when Emery took over to now being right in the mix for the title.
It still feels too soon for Villa to get across the line – and that may perhaps be exactly how Villa want to be viewed right now. But there is absolutely no question that they are moving in the right direction at a rapid rate.
There is certainly the opportunity to achieve something very special this season.