One of the most underrated academies in the Premier League currently is that of Aston Villa. Since the competition rebranded from the First Division in 1992, the Villans have produced some excellent players, including the competition’s all-time leading appearance maker, Gareth Barry.
Other players produced from Villa’s underrated academy include Jack Grealish, whose £100m move from the Villans to Manchester City was once a British transfer record, and Gary Cahill, a Champions League winner with Chelsea.
Since Unai Emery took over managerial duties at Villa Park, he has nurtured some more homegrown talent, but one player, in particular, has stood out and has seen his value rise greatly in the time Emery has been in charge.
Jacob Ramsey’s value in the 2022/23 season
The player in question here is Jacob Ramsey. The 23-year-old midfielder is a boyhood Villan and was born locally to the club, in Birmingham. He made a rapid rise from the youth ranks to the first team and has since become a key player for his boyhood side.
The former England under-21 international has particularly been making waves under Emery, with the Spaniard helping him to fine-tune his game and become the “serious talent” widely known today, as football scout Antonio Mango described him.
The former Arsenal boss took charge at Villa Park in October 2022. In November, a then 21-year-old Ramsey was valued at just £23.6m, according to Transfermarkt. He was still breaking through into the Villa first team, although previous manager Steven Gerrard had given him several opportunities.
However, when Emery took charge, the youngster really showed his class. In that first season under the Spanish tactician, the 2022/23 campaign, the Birmingham-born attacking midfielder played 24 times, scoring five times and grabbing seven assists.
Impressively, all five of those goals, along with six of the assists, came in the Premier League, a competition in which he made 22 appearances. That is his best return in a single top-flight season to date.
By the end of the season, the youngster’s value had shot up, and he was worth £27m as a result of his impressive performances.
Ramsey’s value in 2023/24
Sadly for Ramsey, the 2023/24 campaign was hampered by injury. The 23-year-old missed 27 games over 186 days with three different ailments last term. First, a foot injury kept him sidelined before he missed a short period with a hamstring issue, and then a toe injury which kept him out for 17 games and 119 days.
With all that time on the sideline, the attacking midfielder did not quite manage to hit the same highest as he did previously. Last term, he played 21 games in all competitions, scoring one goal and grabbing two assists. Just one goal and assist apiece came in the top flight, in 16 games.
It was certainly a frustrating time for Ramsey, although his value did still rise slightly. By June this year, he was worth an impressive £50m, a price Villa slapped on his head, according to Football Insider. This certainly shows just how much he has thrived under Emery. In all, his value under the Spaniard rose an impressive 111% from when he first took charge at Villa Park.
Date
Age
Value
November 2022
21
£23.6m
March 2023
21
£27m
June 2023
22
£35.5m
December 2023
22
£35.5m
June 2024
23
£50m
The Villa number 41 has started the new season strongly. He has made three appearances so far, although is yet to start a game as he is eased back to fitness. Ramsey already has an assist to his name, for Jhon Duran against West Ham United, a goal that proved to be a winner.
There is no doubt that, in Ramsey, the Villans have their next academy star in the making. If he can stay fit this season, he could once again put up some stellar numbers under Emery as Villa look to impress on the biggest stage, the Champions League.
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1 ByJoe NuttallSep 9, 2024