Journalist says Aston Villa hope they have another Jacob Ramsey on their hands in exciting teen

Aston Villa are hoping teenage starlet Tim Iroegbunam will follow in the footsteps of Villa Park favourite Jacob Ramsey, according to journalist Dean Jones.

Iroegbunam joined Villa from Midlands rivals West Bromwich Albion last summer and has gone on to feature heavily for the club’s under-23s, but his sights will now be firmly set on breaking into head coach Steven Gerrard’s regular plans.

Iroegbunam was rewarded for his application with the under-23s by being handed his senior debut as a late substitute in last weekend’s 2-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion.

Gerrard admitted the central midfielder has ‘stood out’ since he was appointed as Villa’s boss in November and is a ‘long project’ thanks to boasting attributes the coaching staff admire.

The 19-year-old is clearly eager to enjoy more first-team action and took to social media after the cameo appearance to claim ‘this is just the start’.

According to BirminghamLive, Iroegbunam has been described as a mixture of Manchester United ace Paul Pogba and Chelsea star N’Golo Kante ‘by those within the corridors at Bodymoor Heath’.

The report suggests the highly-rated prodigy is also in line to hold discussions over a long-term contract in the not-too-distant future.

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Jones believes Villa are hopeful that Iroegbunam will go on to break into the Midlands club’s midfield in the same way Ramsey has.

Having come through the ranks, Ramsey has gone on to make more than 50 appearances for the senior side and is now valued at £13.5million by Transfermarkt.

Jones feels handing more opportunities to Iroegbunam may result in adding fresh faces to Gerrard’s options in the middle of the park no longer being a