Aston Villa man backed to take loan club to 'heights no-one dreamed possible'

Bailey is finally on course to make his debut for the Italian club after a nightmare period since joining them for the season in August.

The Jamaica international was greeted at Rome’s airport by fans but then suffered a muscle injury in his first training session that same day.

Bailey is now close to returning to training and could be available when they resume their Serie A campaign against Inter Milan after the international break.

Craig Butler, who adopted Bailey as a child and who has represented him throughout his career, has told Roma supporters to expect big things.

“Soon the return of the relentless pursuit of excellence,” he wrote on Instagram.

“Leon will soon be back on that pitch delivering for AS Roma and making Roma reach again to heights no one dreamed possible.

“I believe and I know my son. Watch. Go get them chips.”

Villa will be hoping Butler’s prediction proves true with Roma possessing an option to make Bailey’s move permanent for around £19million at the end of the season.

The Italian club have already paid £2.6m as part of the 28-year-old’s loan agreement.

Villa had initially been hoping to offload Bailey on a permanent basis after a hugely underwhelming 2024-25 season in which he scored only two goals and struggled with injury.

Bailey joined Villa from Bayer Leverkusen in 2021, with the club using some of the proceeds of Jack Grealish’s then British record £100m move to Manchester City to fund the £25m deal.

After struggling for consistency during his first two seasons in the Premier League, he played a huge role in Villa’s 2023-24 campaign, scoring 14 goals in all competitions as Unai Emery’s team qualified for the Champions League.

His efforts were rewarded with a new contract which runs through to 2027 but his loss of form for large periods of last season has seen him deemed surplus to requirements.

Bailey left the pitch in tears following Villa’s final home match of last season, believing he would be sold.

Yet despite some interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia, no firm bids were ever lodged and the season-long loan deal with Roma was agreed in the final weeks of the window as Villa worked to lower their wage bill to ensure they complied with Uefa's spending rules.

Without Bailey, Roma have enjoyed an excellent start to the season and are currently joint-top of the Serie A table with Napoli after winning five of their first six matches.