Aston Villa’s Top Goal-to-Minute Players
In a season where Aston Villa has been balancing domestic ambitions with a European campaign, the need to be clinical is increasingly pivotal. Villa are less of a surprise package now and the ways of Unai Emery will be well-studied by opposition managers. As a result, Villa may find it harder to fashion chances, so they are becoming more valuable. Amongst the Villa squad though, Villa are blessed with an England striker and two players in Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers that are improving by the month. The trio make up Villa’s top scorers, but how efficient are they in terms of their minutes played? Let’s take a closer look at Villa’s top performers in terms of goals-to-minute ratio and what their contributions mean for the team.
Jhon Durán: The Super Sub and Top Scorer
At the top of Villa’s list is Colombian forward Jhon Durán, whose ability to make an impact off the bench has been remarkable. With a goal every 85 minutes in the league, Durán has established himself as one of the team’s most reliable finishers despite limited starting opportunities. His knack for scoring crucial goals late in games has given Villa a much-needed edge in tight contests, underlining his importance as a game-changer. The fact he has scored seven, while his xG has only been 5.82, also demonstrates statistically, what our eyeballs have been seeing, that some of his goals have been out of the ordinary.
His Champions League record also mirrors his league exploits. Despite just one start, with five substitute appearances, he has scored three goals in 205 minutes. That’s a ratio of a goal every 68 minutes.
It seems this is normal, as Duran would say.
Despite his lack of game time, Duran with two further goals in the League Cup is Villa’s current top-scorer with 12 for the season.
Ollie Watkins: The Consistent Leader
Ollie Watkins has been a cornerstone of Villa’s attack for the past few seasons, delivering consistently across the season. This season he has attracted some criticism, as he hasn’t perhaps been as clinical as he could have been. Despite being Villa top scorer in the league with eight, his xg was 12.37. He also leads the league with the most missed Big Chances with 18.
Watkins has also gone 359 minutes in the Champions League without a goal, so his only goals this season for Villa have been in the Premier League.
Watkins would perhaps want a better ratio in the league than a goal every 171 minutes, that said, he remains the player who thrives on carrying the offensive burden. His work rate and ability to contribute in open play make him an indispensable figure in Unai Emery’s plans and that’s what is currently holding back Duran’s game time.
Ross Barkley: Efficiency Redefined
Ross Barkley’s quiet return to the club has been one of the more intriguing narratives of Villa’s season. After his opener against Leicester City, he averages a goal every 182 minutes. While Barkley’s overall playing time has been limited to three starts and 13 substitute appearances, his contributions in critical moments have not gone unnoticed. He also scored a goal in the Champions League. Barkley should play an increasingly important part in the second half of the season, so it’s important that he remains on the boil.
Morgan Rogers: More to Come
After Villa’s two strikers, the next main goal scorer in the team is Morgan Rogers, who has chipped in with six league goals this season, averaging one every 261 minutes. While this places him behind Durán, Watkins, and Barkley, his performances suggest potential for greater impact as he continues to develop within the squad.
Rogers also hasn’t scored in the Champions League despite playing 514 minutes, although he did come close with his last-minute goal against Juventus being chalked off. He shouldn’t have to wait long to get his first in the competition though.
Amadou Onana: A Fast Start
Amadou Onana started the season in great fashion scoring three goals in his first five appearances in a Villa shirt. He was certainly adding a new dimension, but the goal well has since dried up. His two league two goals this season have him now averaging one every 457 minutes.
Onana’s physical presence and versatility in midfield offer additional options for Unai Emery’s side, but he hasn’t been so hot since returning from injury. Emery sees him as potentially vital in the deeper stages of the Champions League, and his cracker against Young Boys earlier in the competition, suggest he should add to his goal tally this season, despite going through a cooling off period.
Other Contenders
Villa will be glad that Leon Bailey found the net for the first time this season against Leicester City. Last season, the Jamaican winger was Villa’s second top scorer behind Watkins with 10 goals. Having played 2080 minutes, so averaged one goal every 208 minutes. This was his best league goal-minute ration in his career.
Villa will also be hoping that John McGinn’s recent injury won’t keep him out for many weeks, as while he hasn’t scored in the league yet this season, he has got a brace in the Champions League. McGinn netted six in the league last season and would hope to still get a similar amount before this season is out.
Goals-to-Minutes Efficiency Table – Villa’s Top Five
| Player | League Goals | Minutes Played | Goals per Minute |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Jhon Durán | 7 | 593 | 85 |
| 2. Ollie Watkins | 8 | 1,370 | 171 |
| 3. Ross Barkley | 3 | 546 | 182 |
| 4. Morgan Rogers | 6 | 1567 | 261 |
| 5. Amadou Onana | 2 | 914 | 457 |
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The Bigger Picture
Unai Emery has often spoken about trying to get both Duran and Watkins in the team alongside each other, but we’ll see in the second-half of this season whether that is practical or not. It’s unlikely Villa would play with two up top, bar chasing games late on. Will Watkins remain numero uno in Emery’s eyes? Something tells MOMS that if Villa are to surprise people in the Champions League in the later rounds, it would be down to the exploits of Duran. Meanwhile, if Villa are to resurrect their top four or five ambitions in the league, Watkins will again have to get close to and hopefully past 20 league goals.
The surprise this season though has been the lack of goals from the midfield from the likes of Youri Tielemans, Jacob Ramsey, Bailey and McGinn. The centre-backs too, only have one goal between them.
The five Villa players in the above table are the only ones to have scored two goals or more in the league, so there is massive room for improvement in the second-half of the season. Diversity of goal scorers will obviously be critical in maintaining Villa’s competitiveness across both the Premier League and Europe.
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