Unai Emery says Jhon Duran will play an “important” part in Aston Villa’s campaign after scoring the winning goal against West Ham United – one of the clubs linked with signing him in the summer transfer window.
The Colombia international, who told the club that he felt a move away from Villa Park would help further his career amid interest from Chelsea and the Hammers, landed himself in hot water last month when he made the Irons gesture during an Instagram live stream.
Ahead of this weekend’s encounter with Julen Lopetegui’s side, Emery referred to it as the kind of mistake a youngster would make and insisted the striker would play a role in the team as long as he’s at the club.
The Spaniard was true to his word, bringing Duran off the bench to replace Ollie Watkins just over an hour into Saturday’s game at the London Stadium.
