In January, Donyell Malen exited Aston Villa to join AS Roma on an initial loan deal. Unai Emery has now spoken about the move, which has gone down well in Italy.

SportWitness recently covered the deal extensively, as the Italian secured the conditional obligation to sign the Dutchman.

Even though Roma are out of the Champions League spots, it’s become clear they will meet Aston Villa’s demands for Malen. The Friedkin ownership is convinced by his abilities, with the striker having scored seven goals in 11 league games.

He’s also attracted a lot of praise from Gian Piero Gasperini, whose system isn’t easy to adjust to. However, Malen has adapted to his tactics, solving Roma’s striker problems.

His parent club were in Italy on Thursday, playing against Bologna in the Europa League quarter-final. They picked up a 3-1 win, as Ollie Watkins scored in stoppage time to give them a cushion ahead of a crucial second leg.

Reason behind transfer clear

Emery spoke to Sky Italia after the game. While the tie was a point of discussion, he was also asked about Malen and why he was allowed to leave Aston Villa.