Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira, Sports Reporter
WITH his direct competition Douglas Luiz set for an extended break because of elongated national team commitments, Warriors’ midfielder Marvelous Nakamba should be central to Aston Villa’s plans for the opening stages of the Premier League season.
Luiz is expected to be given an extended break following his involvement with the Brazilian team that won gold at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday.
In the absence of Luiz, Nakamba has been impressive for Villa during pre-season.
Villa ended their pre-season with a comfortable 3-0 win over Italian lower league side Salernitana and now await their Premier League opener against Watford next Saturday.
Nakamba has been receiving rave reviews in the friendly matches Villa has played.
Manager Dean Smith has given Nakamba a chance to prove himself in the friendlies and he appears to have grabbed the opportunity with both hands.Nakamba attained a rating 7 out of 10 from Birmingham Mail writer Ashely Preece in Villa’s last pre-season game.
“Another confident display here with Nakamba probably my pick for player of what’s been a disruptive pre-season. The Zimbabwean took up some key positions to stop the Italian side from breaking as Villa pushed bodies forward. Again, he mopped up well while he played a quality vertical pass into Ings’ feet to spring a Villa attack. Nakamba’s nailed-on to start at Watford on Saturday. He’s been impressive this summer,” said Preece.
Nakamba looks set to stay at Villa after being linked to Everton and Crystal Palace earlier in the transfer window. – @innocentskizoe
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