Player #876 for Aston Villa, Jordan Kevin Amavi, played as a left back for the club in Villa’s Premier League relegation season of 2015-16 and during the Football League Championship campaign of 2016-17 making 48 appearances.

Amavi was born in Toulon on 9 March 1994 and was signed from OGC Nice for a fee of €11.00m on 18 July 2015.

His arrival was a refreshing antidote to the sub-standard Villa signings that maligned the club throughout the 2015-16 campaign and drove Villa to their first relegation in nearly 30 years. Players such as Adama Traoré, Micah Richards, Jordan Veretout, Jordan Ayew, Rudy Gestede, Joleon Lescott and José Ángel Crespo were brought to the club despite being nowhere near the standards required of top-flight players, and Villa paid the price.

Many of Amavi’s teammates were controversial signings undertaken ostensibly under the leadership of Tim Sherwood but in truth driven by the sheer idiocy of Sporting Director Hendrik Almstadt and Director of Scouting and Recruitment Paddy Riley. Two names that would be painted into Villa folklore for their footballing illiteracy and ultimate responsibility for Villa’s first relegation in three decades.

Jordan Amavi, however, was made of different gravy, and despite injuries, a new league, new country and new language, he suffered from none of the arrogance and self-entitlement of many of his fellow newcomers.

It is no exaggeration to say that a Villa team full of Amavis wouldn’t have been anywhere near the relegation zone in 2015-16; however, for all his good qualities on and off the pitch, Jordan’s contribution to Villa was blighted by injury.

Amavi made his debut appearance for Villa on Saturday, 8 August 2015, aged 21, winning the man of the match award, as Villa recorded what would turn out to be a rare victory in their 2015-16 Premier League campaign.

Amavi played in ten of Villa’s first twelve Premier League games before suffering a season-ending injury.

Nothing whatsoever was going right for Villa in 2015-16, much of it self-inflicted, in the case of Amavi, however, that was just plain bad luck and the worst possible player for it to happen to.

Whilst his team-mates toiled in the most torrid relegation surrender imaginable, Amavi set about his recovery, determined to repay Villa for the faith they had shown him, no matter what league they were competing in.

The contrast in Amavi’s attitude to that of some of his teammates really cannot be overstated.

In truth, Amavi was too good for the Villa side of 2015-16 and too good for the second tier in which Villa competed in 2016-17; however, true to his word, Amavi remained with the club with the single-minded pursuit of helping them regain their Premier League status.

Amavi made 36 appearances in 2016-17, but Villa struggled to adapt to life in the second tier.

Amavi couldn’t be expected to stay with a Villa side lucky to be 13th in English football’s second tier, and so with the blessing of the club and surely anyone who saw his commitment to the Villa cause, Jordan was allowed to move on loan to Olympique Marseille ahead of a permanent move in July 2018 in exchange for a fee of €10m.

As Amavi recalled in 2021:

“It’s true that at the time it was an important amount for a young defender [€11m for a 21-year-old]. It never got to my head because I was living a dream. Plus, England was great for someone who likes going into challenges like me. Especially tackling, they love that. Players will get criticised for going in hard, whereas over there, it’s seen in the same way as a nice skill.

“Sometimes, it was a bit much, I’ll admit! I also loved that mentality of never giving up. I remember that game against Leicester, the year they won the title. We were 2-0 up but lost 3-2 in stoppage time. The scenario was so crazy that I realised it’s a unique football country.

“Despite the bad results, I loved my experience. Life was nice, despite the lack of sun. My dad didn’t like that! He told me, ‘I’ll never come back’.”

Amavi played under Tim Sherwood, Kevin MacDonald, Rémi Garde, Roberto Di Matteo and Steve Bruce.

A credit to himself… and his miserable Dad.