Amadou Onana of Aston Villa during the Premier League match at Villa Park, Birmingham / Caleb Yirenkyi celebrates his winner in Ghana vs Panama at the 2026 World Cup

Aston Villa may have to replace Amadou Onana with Caleb Yirenkyi this summer.Imago / BBC Sport

Caleb Yirenkyi is Aston Villa's perfect Amadou Onana successor after what he did vs Panama

Senior Correspondent AUTHORITY Senior football journalist specialising in refereeing and officiating; former contributor to The Football League Paper, Late Tackle, and the Premier League; University of Derby graduate. FOCUS Refereeing controversies, football finance and governance, PGMOL decisions, and officiating analysis across the Premier League, EFL, and SPFL. THE INSIGHT Harri utilises a network of officiating and industry contacts to deliver verified, expert analysis of refereeing decisions and PGMOL policy. He provides the regulatory clarity behind the controversy to ensure fans get the full picture.

Published on:

18 Jun 2026, 11:45 am

Caleb Yirenkyi could soon be on his way to the Premier League after a very impressive opening display at the 2026 World Cup.

Unai Emery has done a decent job in developing young talent, but there is no doubt that the Villans need to bring more youth into the current squad.

The Villans currently have one of the oldest average squads in the Premier League, and if they are to continue forward, this needs to change drastically over the summer months.

Villa's main trouble is that their main young talents, such as Morgan Rogers and Amadou Onana, are strongly linked with moves away, and many appeared to be resigned to their exits.

While no bids have come in just yet, multiple big-name clubs are targeting midfield maestros, including those across Europe, and Onana certainly fits the bill at Villa Park.

Emery needs to have a contingency plan in place should clubs come knocking for the Belgian's signature after the World Cup, but the tournament could be their saviour.

Caleb Yirenkyi to fly onto Premier League radars

Ghana, 73rd in the world, pulled off an unexpected win against 34th-ranked Panama on Thursday, 18 June, with the sides only separated by one goal.

That came in the fifth minute of added time from 20-year-old Yirenkyi of Nordsjaelland, who may have just popped up on the radar of multiple scouts.

Not only did he score the winner, but he also completed 97 per cent of his passes, completed 100 per cent of his dribbles, made nine recoveries, and entered into 11 duels [FotMob].

He was a force to be reckoned with in Ghana's World Cup opener, giving them every chance of advancing to the knockout stages, and Yirenkyi deserves to be acknowledged for his performance.

Villa's selection in midfield is far from perfect, so the addition of Yirenkyi would strengthen the team, as well as bring in a potential replacement for the exit-linked Onana.

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There are more products from Nordsjaelland's academy in the Premier League than many realise right now.

Tottenham Hotspur's Mohammed Kudus is possibly the biggest name of them all, though he has been stuck on the sidelines the beginning of 2026.

Sunderland's Simon Adingra, currently on loan at Monaco, has impressed in small spurts, while Brentford's Mikkel Damsgaard continues to reach new levels at the Gtech Community Stadium.

It certainly seems like a risk worth taking for the Villans, given that he could be available for cheap, but they have to act quickly before other giants clock onto his World Cup performances.

Sunderland Association Football Club