The start of this year offered a crossroads moment in Lamare Bogarde’s Aston Villa career.
The 20-year-old had been recalled early from a second successive loan at Bristol Rovers, having first joined the League One club in January 2023. There was speculation Villa had brought back Bogarde to sell him, similar to how Finn Azaz returned from Plymouth Argyle in that same window only to join fellow Championship side Middlesbrough permanently days later.
Bogarde’s situation was more uncertain, for two reasons. First, fellow Villa defender Calum Chambers had interest from teams in the Championship and, in the event of his departure, Bogarde would provide defensive backup; second, West Bromwich Albion, also of the second tier, wanted Bogarde on loan.
A move for Chambers did not materialise then and the plug was pulled on Bogarde leaving again. In this instance, his versatility was a determining factor. Villa manager Unai Emery believed he could cover multiple positions — namely, either side of his central defensive pairing or in central midfield.
He did not play a single minute of first-team football for the remainder of last season but that period is now considered crucial as it helped develop Bogarde’s understanding of Emery’s detailed style.
Emery’s lengthy analysis sessions struck a chord with Bogarde, who uses footage to improve his game.
He was initially promoted to Villa’s first team under Dean Smith as a 17-year-old and his conscientious nature impressed team-mates. Bogarde does additional training sessions away from the club, having witnessed first-hand the professionalism of others in the dressing room, including Ezri Konsa and Tyrone Mings, fellow defenders who took him under their wing.
Team analysis at Villa before games is described by sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect relationships, as “unbelievably detailed” and sessions often last well over an hour. On top of that, there are multiple meetings on the day of matches to drill the layers’ responsibilities into them. Bogarde quickly realised Emery’s meticulous preparation is merited and that he would become a better player if he adhered to the manager’s instructions.
Doubt persisted this summer, though. Bogarde was entering the final 12 months of his contract. For Villa and the player, the decision was straightforward — move on or agree a new deal. It looked like being the former at first, with fellow Premier League side Nottingham Forest tabling a £4million ($5.2m) offer.
Forest’s overtures stressed the need for swift action but Villa preferred that Bogarde, who is settled in Birmingham four years after his move from Feyenoord, stayed. Emery was a growing advocate and decided the player would go on the club’s United States pre-season tour while contract talks took place in the background. The question increasingly centred on whether he would stay with Villa for the season or head out on another loan. On August 8, The Athletic revealed a long-term deal was about to be finalised.
Bogarde was highly rated in scouting circles when he joined Villa. Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur had monitored both him and his elder brother, Melayro, who signed for Germany’s Hoffenheim from Feyenoord in 2018 and is now at Austrian club LASK. They come from a prestigious footballing family — their uncle, Winston, won the 1995 Champions League with Ajax and earned 20 caps for the Netherlands in a career that included spells at AC Milan, Barcelona and Chelsea.
Lamare Bogarde’s Villa debut came in a January 2021 FA Cup third-round tie against Liverpool and he signed his first professional deal a few days later. Bogarde’s reputation internally at Villa has never been in question. He helped them win the FA Youth Cup later that season and then travelled on the first team’s 2022-23 pre-season tour to Australia. Where his next and biggest step would take him felt undecided until this summer.
When Villa went to the States in July, three players from the under-21s were selected in the initial party: goalkeeper James Wright, 19, and defenders Sil Swinkels, 20, and Josh Feeney, 19. Bogarde joined the trip later. Sources close to the situation say Bogarde’s clear decision-making on the ball, a necessity when building from the back under pressure, was key to convincing Emery.
Bogarde was regarded as having a high level of courage in possession, demonstrated in the tour matches against Club America and Athletic Bilbao. In the second game, he was the only player on the pitch for the full 90 minutes. Emery saw that Bogarde’s composure and ability to step into midfield — his favoured role — from centre-back could help Villa break through an opposition press. Pre-season performances enhanced his standing at the club and convinced Emery he should be part of his 2024-25 squad.
Emery had an eye on developing Bogarde as a right-back, where he made his Premier League debut in the starting line-up against Leicester City in August, even though he had hardly played there. In 112 games — spanning Premier League 2, under-17s football in the Netherlands, the EFL Trophy, his two League One loans and differing youth competitions — he had been used as a right-back once.
Yet Emery thought Bogarde’s reliable decision-making in possession and experience as a central defender would enable Villa to build in a back three with the ball or combine neatly in wide positions. Before his top-flight debut, Bogarde believed he would play, as he was being trained at right-back, with Emery coaching the finer points. Although Villa’s manager did not say outright that he would play, he told Bogarde that, if he did, it would be at right-back. This helped sharpen the Dutchman’s mind.
Bogarde played 79 minutes in Villa’s 2-1 win at King Power Stadium, with Konsa discernibly keen to direct his team-mate’s positioning. The 20-year-old did well, earning praise from the coaching staff after he remained strong against hugely experienced 107-cap Ghana international winger Jordan Ayew, even if he occasionally appeared uncomfortable operating out wide.
“When we need young players, they must be ready, knowing our style and demands,” said Emery. “Bogarde played good matches in pre-season, trained every day and after the injuries to (Matty) Cash and Diego Carlos, we prepared for different options. Bogarde has the qualities to play there.”
He played the full game in the win over Everton and a Champions League debut swiftly followed in Villa’s league-phase opener against Young Boys of Switzerland last month before returning to central defence a week later in the Carabao Cup victory away to League One’s Wycombe Wanderers, playing alongside Swinkels, who he was housemates with until last summer.
Although Cash is now fit again after an early-season hamstring injury and playing right-back, Bogarde will remain a useful option. Against Manchester United last weekend, for example, he was selected on the bench to provide midfield cover, with the impression internally that he would come on for Ross Barkley, should the 30-year-old not complete the 90 minutes in his first league start of the season.
Villa’s academy is strong but awaits its first player to fully break through under Emery. If their graduates can cope tactically and technically with first-team demands, then opportunities should gradually follow.
Bogarde is the furthest ahead in making the next step.
(Top photo: Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)
