With the finishing line and closer, Aston Villa needs a sprinter like Donyell Malen to help them cross for their rivals.
The Dutchman had a curious few months. He was bought by Aston Villa for £ 20 million in January, seduced by the opportunity to continue playing in the Champions League after leaving Borussia Dortmund.
With his feet hardly saw grown under the table -attackers Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio also move to Villa Park in the winter. Both players have a higher profile and have quickly overshadowed the Malendeal, although they are only on loan.
And when Unai Emery also used Defender Axel Disasi on loan from Chelsea, was grinding from the Champions League photo, the victim of the UEFA rules with which clubs cannot add more than three winter signets to their squadrons for Europe.
Saying that Malen was disappointed would be an understatement. Even in the Premier League and the FA Cup, he struggled to find a place in the team and the 26-year-old still made only two starts in the competition for Villa.
But with Rashford injured, Malen is the fastest attacker that Villa has.
What is even more important, it is relatively fresh. Morgan Rogers has been the best attacker of Villa this season, but with 4,214 minutes under his belt this term, it is no surprise that he starts to look tired. Ollie Watkins is not far behind 3,299.
Malen, on the other hand, has only clocked 1,144 for Dortmund and Villa. Despite his limited playing time, he still managed three goals for Villa, on average every 98 minutes. In the 1-0 win over Fulham, Malen was lively as a late replacement and he hit the bottom of the bar in stop time.
There is still a rawness of Football Van Malen that is unusual in a player with eight years in senior football and 42 caps for the Netherlands.
It sometimes feels like his feet are moving a touch faster than his brain.
Too often when he has to go on the brakes, grinding his foot on the floor. The head can remain when he has to look up. This sometimes means that wild efforts in the crowd are blasted or cross over the face of the goal when a simple pass, rolled to a teammate, it succeeded.
However, this unpredictability is not a bad thing in the current position of Villa. Although he has not been productive, the speed of Rashford brings an extra dimension to Villa's attack.
With the On-Loan Manchester United-Man still sidelined with a hamstring injury, Villa has looked a bit like in the future. Malen can change – as long as Emery can take it roughly with the slippery.
One of the favorite words of the Basque coach is 'structure' and new signing sessions need time to understand his detailed tactical requirements. For someone like grinding there will inevitably be teething problems.
Youri Tielemans has been a villa's player of the year, but had difficulty making an impact in his first season. Only now does Ian Maatsen begins to challenge Lucas Digne for the left side, despite the fact that he arrived last summer.
Whether Villa is eligible for the Champions League, Europa League of Europe Conference League, grinding will be sure that he can play an important role in the next term.
But because Villa probably needs 10 points of their remaining four games to secure a top-five finish, grinding can make the difference here and now.
Malen is the kind of player defenders. He is constantly on the road. He rattles in abundance – 3.69 per match on average during the last 12 months, making it in the top three percent of the widest five competitions in Europe.
Although he is only 5ft 10 in, grinding a physical duel and will buffet markings that are much larger than he is. Emery prices versatility among his attackers and times can play both flank and through the middle. He is also selfless and popular with his teammates.
Malen's attitude since he comes to Villa suggests that he has been made of the right stuff. Many players would fall tools if they were signed for £ 20 million and then told that they could not play in the Champions League. Nevertheless, Mail Sport understands that Malen has trained furiously since the first day at Bodymoor Heath.
Although Emery spends a lot of time on the individual to meet players individually, these conversations are usually to discuss their specific jobs in a coming game. He does not spend much time explaining why he chose some players and omitted others.
A strong mentality is needed to tackle this and again, grinding the test seems to endure.
What he needs now is a series of competitions. With Asensio struggling to handle the pace of the competition when he is in the starting line-up, the answer could be grinded, especially on Saturday in Bournemouth, who will present a serious test of endurance.
Unlike many clubs in this phase of the campaign, Emery has most of his players available. It is now a matter of making the right choices and grinding will have the feeling that he has done more than enough to earn his chance.