From Champions League breakout star to Saudi – Duran’s unexpected journey

It was an unexpected turn on a rapid trajectory that has taken him from Colombia to Major League Soccer (MLS) to the Premier League and now to Saudi in just six years.

With a new long-term contract and a stunning 25-yard Champions League winner against Bayern Munich, Duran had been one of Villa’s young stars this season. He had also had a 12-game scoring streak with Villa, including a stunning 25-yard winner against Bayern Munich.

However, his benchside influence was largely absent, making some people wonder if he was “the ultimate impact sub.”

He struggled to dislodge England international Ollie Watkins as Unai Emery’s preferred frontman and was in the starting XI just once as Villa navigated their Champions League group to reach the last 16, and four times in the Premier League.

The Colombia international will join a forward line that includes former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane and five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr, which he joined for an additional $ 18 million deal from Chicago Fire to Villa Park.

Wilberth Perea Mena, a youth coach who first met Duran at his first club Envigado when he was 14 years old, told BBC Sport, “We told him, today he is here in El Dorado fields, and tomorrow he could be facing the best stadiums in the world.”

“He laughed, but I think that dream has come true”.

Envigado are a club that take pride in their academy and talent transferring system.

The phrase “Cantera de Heroes” is used as the slogan. Cantera translates as quarry but in a football sense is used to describe academies.

Although they have yet to bring home any significant awards since founding in 1989, they have produced numerous Colombia internationals and Champions League players like James Rodriguez, Juan Fernando Quintero, Mateus Uribe, Fredy Guarin, and Yaser Asprilla.

Envigado had the best opportunities for young players, according to the CIES Football Observatory’s report from 2024. Envigado was only second in the world after Athletic Bilbao.

So the ideal club for Jhon Jader Duran – as he is known in his homeland – to join at the age of 11. However, he had a difficult start by leaving his family’s home in a rural area of Colombia’s second-largest city Medellin to pursue that dream.

However, things got better when the club moved his family to an apartment where they could live.

“Fortunately, he managed to have the nucleus of his family close to him”, said Perea, “a very humble, hard-working, honest family. Very kind people.

He has a temperament in the game, but he is very close to his family.

“Many times it is not what is reflected on the playing field. You have to get to know Jhon a little more inside because he is a noble, calm person.

Perea, the coach who converted Duran to a striker, used to show him videos of top strikers like Villa and Colombian icon Juan Pablo Angel.

“Jhon was sometimes difficult. Although it was occasionally challenging, Perea said she was aware of how to handle it.

“It was very important for me to understand the individual and the football player first.

” That was an important detail because one understands his childhood has not been easy, it was not easy at all. “

Perea relates how Duran was given permission to play in a national tournament by going to his school.

If you find him in the classroom, the principal instructed me to grant his permission. So I entered the classroom and Jhon Jader was missing class.

He had been playing Reggaeton music at home.

I ranted to his home after leaving that school, “Frustrated.” I almost grabbed him by the ears. “

At the age of 15, Duran joined the Envigado first team and soon after that, he became the second youngest player to score a top-flight goal for Colombia.

Perea said, “I knew he would be a great player because he had faith in his convictions and knew he could accomplish great things.”

“He managed to direct his talent because we knew that he could give much more. It really makes me happy because he has accomplished a lot of great things.

Thank God for guiding this great person and great football player.

Pelzer was a German defender who played for several teams in his homeland – plus 18 months at Blackburn.

Unfortunately, he missed out on a lot of his time at Ewood Park because of his injuries, which limited his League Cup game against Walsall in 2002.

Pelzer started working as a club technical director of Chicago Fire in December 2019 after retiring from the game for four years.

A few months into the job he went to Envigado to scout a defender – who they also went on to sign.

I was watching Carlos Teran, our main target, when he told BBC Sport. You could already tell how talented Jhon was once he was subbed in later.

“He was a raw talent but you could see his speed and acceleration. He was already a stumbling block for the defensemen in the air.

I was aware that he already had something to offer England from my experience there. That was something where you could have the fantasy he could make it. It had a “wow” effect.

However, there was a twist in the form of a piece featuring Duran in a column titled “Next Generation 2020: 60 of the best young talents in world football.”

” A few weeks later the Guardian brought a list out, external and after that it was a race, “said Pelzer.

The clock was ticking, but we still wanted to get him. He was being chased by numerous other teams as well. We were convinced about his qualities. “

Duran’s strong family roots were clearly visible during negotiations, once more.

“We had to be creative during the pandemic,” Pelzer said. We had to get in touch with the family – that was not that easy. Finally, we succeeded in getting everyone to agree.

We explained his path forward, “We showed him.” We had a lot of conversations with his family and that was also something that helped a lot in the moment”.

For a fee of $ 2.5 million (£ 1.8 million), Duran, 17, became the youngest international signing in MLS history in January 2021.

He spent the following year on loan with Envigado, but he could not move until he was 18 years old.

As well as playing and training with his Colombian club, he had weekly individual training sessions for the Fire.

Pelzer stated, “It was crucial for us that he had the necessary preparation.” We trained him in a lot of jumping exercises, including acceleration, technique, finishing, and finishing.

” You could see the numbers every week were better, better. If he trains well and is focused on his work, he can achieve a high level. The trajectory was already going in the direction you could see.

Duran left for the States after scoring nine goals in all of Envigado’s 47 games. For a young South American boy coming into a country like the US it was different, “said Pelzer.

“He came from a big city, but that’s how big it is.” He must adapt, of course.

Pelzer said he” was very raw but showed a lot of bright things “on his debut”. That was very impressive, but he claimed that we had to work closely with him to put him in the best frame.

He “has a lot of talent,” he said. When he joined us it was about channeling all his qualities because he has to stay focused on his work, “continued the German”. He can achieve a very high ceiling if he can concentrate there and put all of his efforts into it.

In the final two games of the season, Duran was the club’s top goalscorer, scoring eight goals in 28 games, but he added seven more in the second half.

And then Aston Villa came in and signed him despite competition from other clubs.

Duran joined Villa for an initial $ 14.75 million, plus a potential £ 3.33 million in add-ons, in January 2023, as Unai Emery’s second signing.

Pelzer said, “We weren’t [naive to think] Chicago will be his home for all time. It’s the ambition the player has to have when we try to bring him on, it’s important he wants to move on at a certain point because it shows his character and competitiveness. He displayed that, to my knowledge.

He slammed a crossbar shot past the crossbar in the 38th minute of his Villa career against Manchester City.

He was eased into the picture that season though, making 12 appearances – all from the bench – at an average of just 10 minutes per game, without scoring.

He started making waves last season, despite Watkins’ form and ability preventing him from playing for the team on a regular basis and still does not.

He scored three Europa Conference League goals, including those that were necessary, and five times in the Premier League, including two in the final five minutes of Liverpool’s 3-3 draw in May.

In the summer though he courted controversy. According to reports, he had reportedly agreed to personal terms with West Ham, and he crossed his arms to imitate the Irons logo on live social media.

Before turning 21, he would have had to make a third transfer. But Villa did not sell him.

Thomas Hitzlsperger, a former Aston Villa midfielder, said, “Thank you Emery. A manager typically instructs a player to leave when they want to.

“He put his arm around him and said, ‘ you’ll get your chances, we need you ‘ and now that’s the best proof. He has made a significant difference. Both the player and the management will both claim that they did a good job.

Duran started this season off in spectacular form, scoring four goals in six substitute appearances in the Premier League.

He most famously indicated that he was staying at Villa when he scored against West Ham in a celebration of his goal.

He also scored a fantastic long-range winner against Everton.

But all that has gone before was eclipsed as he lobbed Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to send the home fans wild and seal a famous win.

After the Bayern game, Villa team-mate Morgan Rogers said, “I didn’t know when he came to the club, because I was 20.

He is a “handsome player” because of how he plays. When he comes on with all that energy, he knows he’ll get that chance and backs himself 100%. He is a fantastic student.

Every game is “exactly the same.” He’s the most chilled, relaxed person I’ve ever met. When he’s playing, he’s a different animal.

Duran has only played 1, 043 minutes of football this season, and the bench goals kept coming.

Al-Nassr stepped up their pursuit this week and he was an unused substitute in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Celtic, after which he said his goodbyes to staff and colleagues at Villa Park.

As his globe-trotting career comes to an end, Riyadh will now have millions of pounds and possibly even more playing time.