Former Aston Villa star headed to Russia in latest career twist

The Colombia international is poised to play for a third new club, barely a year after leaving Villa for Al-Nassr in a deal which could eventually be worth more than £70million.

Duran scored 12 goals in 18 matches in Saudi Arabia during the second half of last season but moved again last summer, joining Fenerbahce on loan.

The 22-year-old last month played for Turkish club against Villa in the Europa League.

But the 1-0 defeat was one of his last appearances in Fenerbahce colours after they opted to cancel his loan, with Duran now poised to play in the sixth different country of his still young career.

Zenit were once regulars in the Champions League but like every other Russian club have been banned from European competition since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Duran began his career with Envigado in Colombia and then joined Chicago Fire before being signed by Villa in an £18m deal three years ago.

He went on to score 18 goals in 77 total appearances for the club, many of them memorable including an iconic winner in last season’s Champions League win over Bayern Munich.

But the vast majority of his appearances came off the bench, with boss Unai Emery preferring the greater consistency of Ollie Watkins in attack.

Villa opted to cash in on Duran when Al-Nassr came calling during the January 2025 transfer window and he is yet to return to one of Europe’s top-five leagues.

Lille were last week linked with an approach but it is Zenit where Duran will now play for the rest of the season.