Report: Aston Villa rejected Bayern Munich offer for young player Unai Emery sees as a potential superstar

Aston Villa are currently flying high in all competitions and could go fourth in the Premier League table ahead of the international break.

Unai Emery’s Villans have won four and drawn one of their top-flight games this term and are also through to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.

Last but certainly not least, Villa have won both of their Champions League games so far, including a historic 1-0 win over Bayern Munich.

The Villans have plenty of talented players who have played their part in the team’s brilliant start to the season, including one who Bayern could have signed in the summer.

Aston Villa snubbed Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain offers for Jhon Duran

The player in question is Jhon Duran, who has been shining at Villa following a summer of speculation regarding his future at the club.

Just a couple of months ago, the 20-year-old was a regular on the transfer rumour mill, but he didn’t make a move and is now reaping the benefits.

Duran has six goals from nine Villa appearances this season, of which only one was a start. His six strikes have come from just 297 minutes of football.

Arguably the most important of those goals came on Wednesday night as he bagged the winner against Bayern in the Champions League.

Now, according to Diario AS journalist Eduardo Burgos, Duran was actually in the sights of Bayern, as well as Paris Saint-Germain.

“The Colombian was close to leaving, Germany was one of his favourite options, but Aston Villa stopped his transfer in its tracks,” Burgos wrote on X.

“Unai Emery sees him as a potential superstar.”

Villa made the right call

Football isn’t always about what happens on and off the pitch, but what doesn’t happen.

From the touted transfers that don’t take place to the goals that get disallowed, there are always plenty of talking points that leave fans wondering ‘what if?’.

Luckily, in this case, Villa made the right call. The ‘what if?’ in this case – Duran leaving – would’ve been negative, and it’s a good job he stayed.

At just 20 years of age, Duran is already showing world-class quality, and it’s frightening to think how good he can become over the coming years.