Unai Emery puts firm stop to Aston Villa exit – Nottingham Forest offered ‘serious money’

Aston Villa manager Unai Emery blocked youngster Lamare Bogarde leaving in the summer, despite Nottingham Forest offering ‘serious money’ for him.

That’s according to Dennie van Laar at Voetbal Primeur, who reveals all on the failed transfer and Emery’s reluctance to sell the youngster.

Bogarde has been one of the breakout stars for Aston Villa this season, earning a place in Emery’s first team squad after impressing in the summer.

He’s featured regularly so far this season, with eight appearances and 527 minutes in all competitions so far across the Premier League, Champions League and cup competitions.

The 20-year-old has impressed when given the opportunity, with many predicting a bright future for him at Villa Park and plenty of development under Emery’s management.

The Spanish boss certainly seems to be a fan of the youngster, having turned to him on more than one occasion this season already when the situation required it.

It seems he believes he could be a star of the future, and that belief even led to him outright blocking an exit in the summer transfer window, when Nottingham Forest were ready to pay and make a transfer happen.

“But Emery put a stop to that,” Van Laar said when discussing how Bogarde was ‘being pulled hard’ in the summer.

“They wanted him for €4-5m, but Emery wanted to keep him at Aston Villa and give him a chance. Nottingham Forest really had serious money for him. A number of other clubs also showed serious interest in the young talent.

“And Emery has proven to be a man of his word. Bogarde was given his chance, and Villa did not lose a single time in all the matches. I would field him more often.”