BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - JUNE 17: Douglas Luiz of Aston Villa is seen wearing a Black Lives Matter movement t-shirt as he warms up prior to the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Sheffield United at Villa Park on June 17, 2020 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Paul Ellis/Pool via Getty Images)
According to Express and Star, Aston Villa are set to offer a new contract to Douglas Luiz. The club are attempting to secure the futures of some of their most important players. Already the likes of Jack Grealish, Tyrone Mings and John McGinn have put pen to paper on new deals. Even Ezri Konsa is in line to receive a new contract.
Douglas Luiz rose through the youth ranks of Vasco da Gama and was promoted to the first-team in 2016. He helped his boyhood club secure promotion to the Brasileiro Serie A from the second-tier and subsequently caught the eye in the top-flight with a string of impressive displays. The youngster’s rising stocks in his homeland paved the way for a move to Manchester City in 2017.
Luiz, though, was forced to spend the next couple of seasons on loan at Girona after being denied a work permit to play professional football in England. The midfielder featured 46 times for Girona in all competitions before returning to City in 2019.
He joined Aston Villa last summer and was one of the standout performers for the Villans last season as Dean Smith’s side narrowly avoided relegation.
The 22-year-old has contributed greatly to the club’s stunning start to the 2020-21 campaign, starting each of Villa’s 11 league fixtures so far. The midfielder has made 53 appearances for Villa in all competitions so far, registering 3 goals and 4 assists in the process. Luiz has also earned 2 caps for Brazil at the senior level, having made his debut back in 2019.
Aston Villa have a lot of people to thank for their good start to the season. They have won 6 games already out of the 11 and have produced some significant results against the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal. A lot of plaudits have rightfully gone to the likes of Grealish, Watkins and Barkley.
One player who has quietly gone about his job without much of a fuss is Douglas Luiz. The defensive midfielder has done a very good job of protecting the backline and has been allowing the attacking players to go about their job without any worry.
A new contract is a deserved reward for a player who has stuck by the side during its highs and lows. Villa are rightly trying to secure the futures of their star players and sure enough, Luiz is one of them.