Some signings need a season to find their feet. This one needed about six weeks. Aston Villa fans have watched their record buy settle in at speed, and it seems he hasn’t gone unnoticed elsewhere.
Liverpool want Johan Manzambi
According to The Sun, Liverpool are lining up a summer raid for Johan Manzambi. Villa paid £59.5m to land him from Freiburg, and the Swiss midfielder has repaid that faith quickly. He scored against Tottenham in his first Premier League start, then won player of the match in Wednesday’s 6-0 Champions League thrashing of Fenerbahce. On his 21st birthday, no less. He fired the opener, won a penalty and began the move that gave Ross Barkley a brace.
Capped 20 times by Switzerland, the Geneva-born youngster has seven international goals, three of them at the World Cup in June. Swiss insiders claim Anfield chiefs will track him all season, with Andoni Iraola and his staff said to be impressed. Alexis Mac Allister’s possible exit to Real Madrid could open the door.
He carries the ball forward with confidence, arrives late in the box and doesn’t shy from a shot. Xherdan Shaqiri, Stephane Henchoz and Philipp Degen all made the same journey from Switzerland to Anfield before him.
Can Unai Emery keep Manzambi at Villa Park?
LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 19: Johan Manzambi of Aston Villa celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on September 19, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
Emery won’t lose sleep yet. He has never chased stars for the sake of it, he wants players who follow his plan, and Manzambi follows it. He presses high, runs both ways and drifts between the lines, which is exactly what Emery asks of his midfielders.
Competition is stiff, though. John McGinn, Youri Tielemans, Boubacar Kamara, Amadou Onana and Barkley all want minutes, so Manzambi has earned his place rather than inherited it. That’s healthy. Emery rotates heavily across the Premier League and Europe, and a 21-year-old who scores and creates in the same night makes selection easy.
Liverpool can watch all they like. A club that just paid £59.5m won’t cash in after one season, and Emery will tell the board exactly that. Villa don’t need the money, and Champions League football gives Manzambi a stage he won’t find easily elsewhere.
Mac Allister’s situation is Liverpool’s problem. Emery’s job is simpler, and that is to keep picking him, keep sharpening him, and make leaving look pointless.