Aston Villa playmaker Marco Asensio is thriving under the guidance of Unai Emery, and his parent club Paris Saint-Germain could be the next victims of his rich vein of form in the Champions League.
The prospect of a star such as the Spaniard arriving at Villa Park, six years on from their promotion to the Premier League after three seasons in the Championship, seems like a fairytale in itself. However, the latest twist could be just around the corner.
Just over two months since swapping Paris for Birmingham, the two sides will meet in a mouth-watering quarter-final clash in Europe’s elite competition – Asensio’s goals teed the tie up.
The 29-year-old has already bettered his tally of seven goals across his one-and-a-half-year stint at PSG in a fraction of the time for Villa – and will now look to haunt his parent club by adding to these numbers in the two-legged tie.
Three of them arrived in the round-of-16 meeting against Club Brugge, propelling Villa to a dominant 6-1 aggregate victory. Asensio only needed 72 minutes on the pitch to inflict that damage, such is the form he is in.
A loanee haunting their parent club is a situation rarely seen in England due to a Premier League ruling – but it is not uncommon in Europe. UEFA’s lawbook forbids “any influence whatsoever over the players that another club may field in a match”, meaning Asensio is free to play with a point to prove.
Here, Sky Sports takes a look at the other players who have excelled when facing off against their employers while on temporary moves away.
Coutinho back to bite Barcelona
Barcelona’s marquee £142m signing of Philippe Coutinho – tipped as the heir to Lionel Messi’s throne – did not go to plan. His goals against them for Bayern Munich to dump them out of Europe in the 2019/20 season only added salt to the wound.
Philippe Coutinho scored for Bayern Munich against parent club Barcelona in 2019/20
Like Asensio, Coutinho pursued a loan move after a year and a half of frustration to join Bayern before meeting his parent club in the quarter-finals.
Villa supporters will be hoping their current playmaker can have a similar impact to the Brazil maestro, a player still contracted at the club, after he scored twice and assisted another goal during the rampant 8-2 win on aggregate.
UEFA steps in to allow Courtois to play vs Chelsea
One of the more fiery reacquaintances in football. Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois spent three seasons on loan with Atletico Madrid and eventually went on to meet the Blues in the 2013/14 Champions League semi-finals.
It was reported that a clause in the loan switch required Atletico to pay a sum of £2.5m per game if Courtois was selected, leading to the Spanish side approaching UEFA after claiming they could not pay the fee.
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois shakes hands with Chelsea’s David Luiz after meeting his parent club in the Champions League while on loan at Atletico Madrid
The decision was eventually made that the Belgium shot-stopper could take to the field without any payment being made, with Chelsea’s clause attempting to “influence” who their opponents could select.
Courtois would then shine in the two-legged tie for Atletico, keeping a clean sheet in the first leg and impressing at Stamford Bridge as his side walked away with a 3-1 win on aggregate.
Morientes sinks Real Madrid
Like Asensio, Fernando Morientes lifted Europe’s elite trophy on three different occasions with Real Madrid – but also knocked them out.
After joining Monaco on loan in the 2003/04 season, Morientes faced Los Blancos in a dramatic 10-goal thriller, leading to the French side winning 5-5 on aggregate thanks to away goals scored. The Spaniard netted in both legs.
He would go on to claim the Golden Boot for the tournament in that year, with nine to his name, before returning to the Bernabeu in the following season.
Coman leaves it late vs Juventus
Kingsley Coman, a player well versed on the big stage, joined Bayern Munich on loan from Juventus in 2015/16 and would go on to tee Thomas Muller up in the dying embers of the last-16 meeting between the two sides to send the game to extra-time.
Kingsley Coman scored for Bayern Munich against parent club Juventus in the Champions League
The winger then scored in the 110th minute to seal the 6-4 win on aggregate after Thiago had fired Pep Guardiola’s side ahead in the tie.
Debut at Villa Park – for another club!
Samuel Iling-Junior in action for Bologna
Well, it might be fair to say Samuel Iling-Junior did not haunt Villa when they met earlier in the season – but it is a unique situation worth mentioning.
The 21-year-old was signed from Juventus for just over £11m in the summer before immediately heading back to Italy on loan with Bologna.
Villa were drawn against Bologna in the league phase of the tournament and Iling-Junior climbed off the bench in the 77nd minute of the 2-0 defeat to his parent club, meaning his first outing at Villa Park, while contracted at the club, arrived while wearing the shirt of another team.
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