Brian Madjo has scored three times in three pre-season matches for Aston Villa, and that kind of start has given the Jakarta friendly a much sharper edge than most summer trips get. Ollie Watkins is not expected to feature this weekend, so the teenager’s form is landing at exactly the right time. Tammy Abraham is the other option up front, but Madjo has made himself hard to ignore.
Madjo's case up front
Sports Mole’s preview desk put it plainly: in Watkins’ absence, Madjo “has scored three times in as many matches”, and he “can compete with Tammy Abraham to start up front”. That is the selection issue for Unai Emery, and it is a decent one to have. Three goals in three matches is the clearest reason Madjo has moved from interesting name to serious contender.
The wider picture is less polished. Villa have won one and lost two of their three summer fixtures, so the tour has not been a clean run. Their next Premier League opener is away to Brighton on August 23, which leaves little time for warm-up noise to linger. They also finished 4th in the Premier League last season, so this summer is about sharpening up, not starting over.
Villa's summer rhythm
The mixed results should not be overplayed, but they do frame the trip properly. Villa are not arriving in Jakarta in top rhythm, and that is why Madjo’s scoring run stands out so clearly. When a teenager is the most productive attacker in a pre-season window, the staff usually pay attention.
The relevant question now is less about whether the friendly itself produces a clean result and more about how Emery uses the available forward options. Watkins looks set to sit out, Abraham is there as the obvious alternative, and Madjo has already done the part of the job you cannot coach away. He has scored in three straight pre-season games, and Villa’s final stop in Jakarta will tell us whether that earns him a more prominent role on the next step of the tour.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
