As
a teenager at boyhood club Envigado in Colombia, Jhon Duran would bombard
his coaches with requests for extra training. "Both before and after
sessions," recalls Wilberth Perea with a chuckle.
"I remember one practice where he missed a headed chance," Perea, his U15
coach, adds to Sky Sports. "Afterwards, he asked me to stay and cross to
him. I must have hit 20 balls. He didn't want to stop. Now you see his
aerial game is one of his biggest strengths."
Duran has only been able to show that aerial prowess in flashes for Aston
Villa, most notably with the prodigious leap that allowed him to head in a
rebound away to Europa Conference League rivals Legia Warsaw in September.
But limited playing time at Villa has not deterred prospective suitors, with
Chelsea said to be keen to take him to Stamford Bridge. The Colombian made
the move from Chicago Fire to Aston Villa in January 2023 as one of South
America's most exciting young strikers. At only 20 years old, his thrilling
potential remains.
There were glimpses in his early Villa cameos. "He looks like a really good
prospect," said Gary Neville after he came on and caused Manchester City
problems on only his second appearance following his arrival last season.
"Villa have got a player there," added the Sky Sports pundit. "He looks a
handful."
They bedded him in slowly. But the start of the new campaign brought four
goals in a month. As well as the towering header against Legia Warsaw, there
was a stunning strike against Crystal Palace and composed finishes against
Everton and Hibernian.
Even then, usurping Ollie Watkins looked a tall order. But Duran continued
to make eye-catching contributions in the second half of the campaign. There
was an unstoppable effort which crashed in off the bar against Ajax in the
Europa Conference League and a smart, angled finish against Manchester City
at the Etihad Stadium.
Then, most memorably, in the penultimate Premier League game of the
campaign, there was the late double against Liverpool, including a
well-taken strike from outside the box, to clinch the 3-3 draw which
effectively sealed Villa's Champions League qualification.
Still, though, Duran reached the end of the campaign having only started 10
games for Villa all season - and only three in the Premier League. He is
eager for more opportunities but Emery is said to have reservations about
his temperament.
The Spaniard has questioned the "consistency" of Duran's application in
training but there were no such problems at Envigado, a club with a
reputation for nurturing young talent and a production line that includes
the former Real Madrid forward James Rodriguez.
Duran's goal threat
Jhon Duran has scored eight times in only 1,221 minutes of action in
all competitions since his arrival at Aston Villa in January 2023,
averaging a goal for every 153 minutes played. |
"Jhon always had the desire to learn and improve," says Perea. "If you give
him your trust, you give him love and security, you interact with him and
you play him, he will do impressive things for you."
Maybe, then, his issues at Villa come down to compatibility with the
manager. After all, there is a lot to like about Duran. He is raw, and
somewhat erratic, but he also explosively quick, physically imposing and a
fine finisher. There are tools to work with.
Perea knows that better than most having helped to oversee a change of
position following Duran's arrival in Envigado's youth academy at the age of
11. "He actually started out as a winger, but I saw fantastic physical
qualities in him," says Perea.
"He was strong, fast, very, very good in the air with a good shot. The club
already had a plan to develop him as a winger, so I knew I might be called
crazy, but I approached the club president, Ramiro Ruiz, and said I thought
we could convert him into a striker."
Perea got his way. "After that, we started to work with him as a striker,
teaching him the concepts and principles of offensive play. Soon, Jhon
discovered his potential to score goals. He scored a lot of goals. We were
sure we could develop him to reach the elite."
Duran's academy exploits saw him exposed to first-team football from a
remarkably young age, making his senior bow for Envigado having only just
turned 15 and becoming the second-youngest scorer in Colombian top-flight
history a few months later.
The work that preceded those milestones was wide-ranging.
"The first thing a striker needs to know is the penalty area," explains
Perea. "It is important he understands his habitat. But he also needs to
know how to use his body, and how to position himself in order to finish off
scoring chances.
"So, part of the work we did, with the approval of the president and the
sporting director, was conceptual, the analysis of videos, and watching
players with similar characteristics, then taking certain details from them
and putting them into practice.
"We looked at Romelu Lukaku, because he is another physically strong striker
with similar characteristics to Jhon. We also took a lot from Luis Suarez,
how he found space in the area, his movement with and without the ball, and
Karim Benzema.
"They were the players who were references for him. They served as models
for what we wanted to create with Jhon. Our focus was to make him a striker
who could score goals, but also combine with other players and make the step
up to the highest level."
The manner in which he adapted to Envigado's first team offered
encouragement. "I remember taking a call from the manager, Eduardo Lara,
late one night, asking me to tell Jhon to come to a practice game with the
first team the next day so he could have a look at him," says Perea.
"I went and watched the game and, despite his age, Jhon made the difference.
He scored twice and made the defenders work all the time, fighting with them
for every ball, competing and showing so much personality. He really caught
the manager's attention."
He was soon attracting the attention of others too, leaving Envigado aged 17
for Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire, where he contributed eight goals
and five assists in only 1,364 minutes during the 2022 campaign before his
£14.75m switch to Aston Villa.
He was welcomed to the club with a message of support from his countryman
and former Villa striker Juan Pablo Angel, another player whose video clips
he pored over in his academy days.
But 18 months on, there is still a sense that he has not shown the true
extent of his potential. So far, Duran has played just 590 Premier League
minutes, the vast majority of his appearances coming from the bench as
Watkins' deputy.
Back at Envigado, though, close to Duran's hometown of Medellin, they are
following developments around his future closely, and with little doubt
about the levels he can still reach.
"The model of this club is to develop players who can go and realise their
dreams of playing in big leagues abroad," says Perea. "With Jhon, that
potential was clear because he made such an impact.
"Remember, he has had to adapt to a new culture and a new style of play in
England. But when he understands the ideas of his manager and he plays, he
is someone who can bring a lot to any side."
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