Aston Villa defender breaks his silence on ‘competitiveness between teammates’ as team bags first Premier League win

Central defender Pau Torres is ready to fight for his place in the Aston Villa starting line-up after Tyrone Mings re-established himself in the first six Premier League games of the season.

Villa manager Unai Emery has started every league match with Tyrone Mings at the back and Torres’ only start was alongside the England international when Ezri Konsa served a suspension.

Torres came into the starting eleven for the Europa League tie against Bologna at Villa Park on Thursday and played an hour against Fulham after Mings went off injured.

The 28-year-old Spanish international is in direction competition with Mings for Villa’s left-sided defensive spot and says he’s up for the battle when it comes to winning that place back. Depending on the severity of Mings’ injury, he might now have his chance.

Torres put in a fine performance against Bologna, tallying an interception, two successful tackles and six clearances as Villa kept another clean sheet to start their league phase campaign with a win. He won eight duels and was rarely physically tested, which is a situation that favours him when compared with the stronger and braver Mings.

“Obviously, you want to play every game, but at the end when Emery has his decisions, we need to respect him and his decisions and then just work hard to have one opportunity and then try to play well when you are on the field,” Torres told the Birmingham Mail.

‘We want to play every game and that’s it’

“I’m the same as my teammates. Everybody works hard in Bodymoor. We want to play every game, and that’s it. I think this competitiveness between the teammates is good; it will help the team, and we’ll improve our level.”

Torres joined Villa in the summer of 2023 for a reported transfer fee of £31.5 million. He reunited with Emery, who was at the helm of the Yellow Submarine between 2020 and 2022.

Unsurprisingly for a player with a big price tag who joined while Mings was recovering from injury, Torres was used heavily in his first season in the Premier League. He played 39 times in all competitions in his maiden season for Villa.

He picked up an injury of his own in the middle of last season, suffering a metatarsal fracture that took him out of contention for two months. He was widely criticised for his performances in the FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace and the last game of the season against Manchester United, with many fans believing Mings was the player best suited for those particular challenges.

Torres has demonstrated his skills in his last two matches. With Mings possibly facing some time out, he now has a chance to reclaim first-choice status.

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