Although Aston Villa fans continue waiting patiently to see more from highly rated Aaron Ramsey, brother Jacob’s improvement and game time so far in 2021/22 has been quite stark compared to the glimpses we saw last season.
Head coach Dean Smith has trusted him in our midfield three for six of our Premier League matches so far and our Academy graduate has bulked up slightly, become more physical and is involving himself better in games now – albeit with plenty of improvements still to make as well as the all important consistency.
During the last international break he saw his England progression boosted as he moved up to the U21 squad before having to withdraw given Covid issues – Aaron was also called on that window owing to withdrawals.
With the October interruption break now with us, U21 manager Lee Carsley has again called on both as he prepares for their game with Slovenia this Thursday.
Carsley is convinced there’s ‘a lot more to come’ from Jacob in particular given the additional experience he’s now gaining at Villa.
Speaking to Birmingham Mail this week, the former midfielder said of the duo.
“I’ve worked with Jacob before. I had him in the 20s squad with me so he’s a player I’ve been aware of for a while, as I have been with Aaron his brother as well. I like Jacob a lot. I think he’s got some outstanding attributes. There’s a lot more to come from him in terms of his ability, adding goals and assists to his game. I really like his mentality. He’s really strong-minded and I’ve watched him a lot for Villa this season. I’ve enjoyed the journey and the pathway he’s been on.”
With Aaron stepping up last month and being back on U19 duty with Carney Chukwuemeka, Carsley went on to add.
“Yep, I like Aaron. He’s a little bit different in the way he plays but physically he’s very good, very quick, moves the ball well, good balance so, yeah, like a lot of players in the under-19s, it’s another high-potential squad I’m definitely keeping an eye on.”
Whilst the interruption break does little for Villa and the training time would better suit us, hopefully all three get good game minutes – which means level debuts for the Ramsey’s – as the boost in confidence can only do them the world of good, which in turn does see a benefit for us.
