One of Dean Smith’s recruits did not make the cut at Villa Park, but his form after leaving reveals a different story…
Over the years, Aston Villa has seen a plethora of talent walk on the pitch at Villa Park, but not all names have been as memorable as others.
From the competence of Emi Martinez between the posts to the dependability of Ollie Watkins leading the charge, Unai Emery’s current generation of stars appear to be heading for new highs in the Midlands.
Having a regular goalscorer hasn’t always been the case for Villa in the Premier League era, with players ranging from Rudy Gestede to Danny Ings failing to live up to the expectation of filling the number nine role.
While some transfers have been worse than others in the past when it came to recruiting strikers, one name stands out as having a disastrous time with the club, but his form after departing tells a different narrative.
Borja Baston’s Aston Villa statistics
Dean Smith decided to sign striker Borja Baston on a free transfer from Swansea City in January 2020 in order to expand his alternatives going forward.
Smith had signed Brazilian forward Wesley the previous summer, but after the new signing suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury early in his rookie season at Villa, Baston was brought in as reinforcement.
The Spaniard had been in South Wales for three and a half years before joining Villa, having joined the Swans from Atletico Madrid in 2016, where he had multiple loan periods before returning to Spain.
Earlier in the 2019/20 season, Baston had six goals in 20 Championship games for Swansea, making enough of an impact for Smith to consider him the right signing.
Smith praised the striker at the time of his arrival for being “hungry” to succeed, but by the summer, his stint at Villa had ended with just two games, 16 minutes played, and no goals.
As shown in the table above, Baston’s tenure at Villa was a catastrophe, and the hunger he demonstrated to Smith was nowhere to be found; nevertheless, his form since departing tells a different narrative.
What is Borja Baston doing now?
After leaving Villa, Baston returned to Spain on a free transfer to join CD Leganes, where he gradually rediscover his form, netting five goals in 35 games in Spain’s second division.
The forward eventually came to life in the 2021/22 season, when he joined for fellow La Liga 2 team Real Oviedo, and the goals started to flow.
Baston scored 22 goals in 40 league games for Oviedo that season, finishing joint-first in the league scoring statistics and demonstrating his efficiency in the final third after years of fighting to regain his footing.
As shown in the table above, Baston outscored Villa forward Watkins that season and has remained within striking distance of the Englishman since his departure from Villa Park in 2020.
Nobody could have expected that Baston would go on to score 22 goals in a season after leaving Villa Park, but football is unpredictable, and one good move may change a striker’s form.
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