Why 18 year old German talent had to say no to Aston Villa interest

 

The story of Philipp Wunn defies belief. At 18 years of age he’s had some of the Bundesliga’s biggest clubs interested in him, and German newspaper Bild say Aston Villa have tried to ‘lure’ the player to England.

However, Wunn has continued to play for fourth division side FC Saarbrücken, passing up the interest from Aston Villa, Borussia Dortmund, Schalke and more.

Wunn wants to stay close to home, and in his case he’s got every reason to. Bild explain that when Wunn was just 8 years of age his mother died of lung cancer: “My father said that us two were only have to be there for each other.”

Two weeks after the death Wunn’s father returned to work. On the way he saw a car accident and rushed to help, trying to pull a woman from a vehicle. Tragically another car hit them both, and whilst the female survived, Wunn’s father did not.

This has understandably had an impact on the young footballer’s career. Bild asked why he’d passed up interest from Aston Villa and others, and Wunn explained: “I was suddenly under huge pressure.

“I didn’t know which club I was drawn to and that made the decision difficult. Then I decided to stay in Saarbrücken. It would also have seemed to me like treason to leave grandma and grandpa alone.”

The grandparents have clearly done a good job and it would be no surprise if Aston Villa and others are still monitoring the situation, waiting for a day when Wunn may be ready to move away.