New Delhi: After being substituted by Unai Emery during Aston Villa’s 2-0 Champions League victory against Bologna at Villa Park, Jhon Duran lost his temper. Aston Villa defeated Bologna 2-0 at Villa Park, soaring to the top of the Champions League standings and winning the top club championship in Europe for the third time in a row without giving up a goal.
Villa grabbed control of the game after a few early scares during the half, but their Italian opponents held firm until ten minutes into the second half. McGinn’s cross from a free kick went right in, giving the home team a fortunate lead. Duran, making a rare start, then decisively ended any dreams of a Rossoblu comeback.
What happened after Duran got subbed off
Sigan hablando mierda de Durán, porque si somos sinceros quizá su reacción fue mala, pero estaba EN CALIENTE, acababa de anotar un golazo y estaba teniendo un excelente partido, daba para más. Estamos necesitando jugadores que QUIERAN JUGAR y así es Jhonpic.twitter.com/2OvPLNrA6P
— Duranismo (@duranista_) October 23, 2024
Looking at the bench as his celebrations came to an end, the Colombian forward saw his number on the fourth official’s board and Ollie Watkins waiting on the touchline. The Colombian striker then kicked and punched his seat in exasperation, clearly losing his temper as he returned to the bench.
Youri Tielemans, Duran’s teammate, agreed with his boss and even found the humorous side of things saying that Duran is an incredibly funny guy while and Unai Emery is not concerned by that. The Belgian further added that everyone wants to play and he knows it. “It’s a part of the game,” is what Tielemans added to his statement. Even though his team has virtually guaranteed a spot in the next round of the Champions League—two more victories might put them in the round of 16—Emery has refused to get ahead of himself.
The perfect start to Duran’s Champions League career and what lies ahead
🟣🔵🇨🇴 Jhon Durán scores his 7th goal of the season in 400 minutes, already two goals in Champions League. pic.twitter.com/35xM1yH2Sr
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 22, 2024
After Duran’s heroics in the historic triumph against Bayern Munich earlier this month, Emery gave him his first-ever Champions League start. Hailed as a “super sub” this season, the 20-year-old made his debut in the 64th minute after drifting into the box and hooking Morgan Rogers’ cross into the far corner.
It would turn out to be his final touch since Ollie Watkins, who didn’t appear too happy when his teammate scored, took his place. After giving the bench a solid beating, Duran needed to be calmed down by one of Emery’s staff members before he could proceed down the tunnel. The attacker has been linked to a move to Arsenal in the past 24 hours, despite having only signed a new six-year contract two weeks ago.
In an attempt to get an all-around striker, the Gunners are considering a transfer for Duran, who has seven goals in just 404 minutes of play this season. Villa supporters, who want to keep the striker happy as an understudy to star Ollie Watkins, will not be alarmed by his outburst on the bench. But after the game, in an attempt to allay worries over the incident, Emery was eager to defend Duran.