“We all thought from the start” – Everton man expecting Aston Villa summer signing to shine quickly

Everton midfielder Merlin Röhl has backed Aston Villa summer signing, and former Freiburg teammate, Johan Manzambi to adapt quickly to life in the Premier League.

Manzambi joined Aston Villa in a €60m deal this summer from the German club. He arrived at Villa Park with a growing reputation, particularly after the World Cup with Switzerland.

He was one of the breakout stars of the summer tournament, bagging a double against Bosnia, another against Canada – alongside an assist – and then another assist in the win over Algeria. A knee bruise brought his tournament to an end early.

It was enough to convince Aston Villa to pay big, though, and beat Newcastle United to his signing.

Now the hope is that he can quickly establish himself in Unai Emery’s side moving forwards.

Switzerland praise

The Villans are yet to see the best of the 20-year-old, although his performance in the 3-2 win over Tottenham – in which he got a goal and an assist – before the international hinted at what might be set to come.

Those who have played with the midfielder, and indeed worked with him, have no doubts. Just this week Sport Witness covered comments from Switzerland favourite Blerim Dzemaili singing his praises.

“In the more than 20 years I’ve been following the national team, I’ve never seen such a complete player,” he said on the Blick podcast Forza!

“Before the World Cup, I was of the opinion that he should come off the bench. Now, he’s become indispensable to the team. The move to Aston Villa was exactly the right step for him.”

“But a player like Manzambi can succeed anywhere,” he added.

“He’s grounded enough for that and has the necessary patience. I think he’s playing even better now than before his injury; he’s also gained physical strength. I believe he could become one of the greatest Swiss players of all time.”

Röhl convinced

Everton’s Merlin Röhl shares that opinion, somewhat. He says he and everyone at Freiburg were convinced early about the Aston Villa man.

“We all thought from the start that he would explode onto the scene,” he said.

“It’s obvious what incredible quality Johan possesses. That’s why he’ll likely have fewer adjustment issues than I did.”

Like everyone, he’ll now be watching as Manzambi looks to get started at Aston Villa. And perhaps he’ll be hoping that doesn’t include a star turn when Everton play away at Villa on December 2^nd.