An Aston Villa player who left the club this summer is set to make his new club debut. Unai Emery’s Aston Villa have been active in the summer transfer market as they prepare for their first season in the UEFA Champions League, and the Midlands club is eager to make the most of it.

Douglas Luiz was criticized for his performances at Juventus. In addition to English winger Samuel Iling-Junior, Juventus included Argentine midfielder Enzo Barrenchea in their deal to sign Luiz from Unai Emery’s Villa. Weston McKennie was originally included in the deal, but HITC understands that the American midfielder was unable to reach an agreement with Juve to cancel his contract, prompting the two parties to discuss Barrenchea and Samuel Iling-Junior. Nonetheless, Juventus completed a deal for Luiz, although the midfielder has struggled to adjust to life in Turin. In an interview with Tuttomercatoweb, Ivan Zazzaroni, director of Corriere dello Sport, criticized Luiz for being “too slow.”

“For me, Napoli had the best transfer market,” Zazzaroni stated. “Juventus spent a lot and did well, but the trio Neres-Lukaku-Kvaratskhelia, along with Buongiorno and McTominay, represents a Conte-style transfer market. Juventus paid a lot for me, including Koopmeiners, who is a fantastic player. “Douglas Luiz appeared too slow in his first outing; if that was the case, he could have stayed at Aston Villa; Locatelli performed better. Up front, they only have one centre forward; something about the Bianconeri does not convince me.”

Villa made the correct option to sell Douglas Luiz.

Villa’s recruitment of Onana has proven successful thus far, with the Belgian midfielder scoring in his Premier League debut against West Ham United. Ian Wright has previously praised Onana’s arrival at Villa, citing the Belgian’s height and aggressiveness as a goal-scoring threat that Luiz lacked. Given the money Villa received and the two players the club acquired in addition to the fee, this has to be considered a successful decision by the Villains thus far.