‘Signing of the season’ - Zion Suzuki helps Aston Villa forget about Emi Martinez as former goalkeeper Brad Friedel lauds £30m Japan international

Villa pulled off quite the coup in securing Suzuki’s signature, as his stock was soaring on the back of impressive outings for his country at FIFA’s flagship event in North America. Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain came close to doing a deal at one stage.

The New Jersey-born 24-year-old ultimately made his way to England, with Europa League title holders requiring a new last line of defence as enigmatic Argentine Martinez made his way towards the exits - with a move to Chelsea eventually being sanctioned.

While hopes were high for Suzuki, history dictates that the Premier League can be notoriously difficult for new arrivals to adjust to. A settling in period of sorts was expected for a man that found himself being thrown in at the deep end.

Villa need not have worried, with an immediate impact being made by a shot-stopper that slotted seamlessly into Emery’s plans. An uncharacteristic error was made in a 1-1 draw with Fulham, as Suzuki dropped the ball over his own line when trying to deal with a corner, but he also made several important saves in that contest.

Little should be read into conceding three times against Lamine Yamal and Barcelona in elite European competition, with the Liga giants full of firepower, and the Villans will be hoping to get back on track when facing inconsistent Manchester United on Sunday.

Suzuki should start against the Red Devils at Old Trafford, with another outing under the brightest of spotlights set to be enjoyed. He can further cement his status as one of the best keepers in English football.

Asked for his assessment of Suzuki, ex-Villa custodian Friedel - who was speaking in association with Grosvenor Sport - told GOAL: “Very good. I think most people, if you watch football, followed him and knew he's a good goalkeeper.

“The one thing you never know, which I've said many times, is you never know how they're going to do mentally and confidence-wise - especially when they have to follow someone that's been as good as Martinez has.

“And then what happens when they make a mistake and how do they perform? Up until the Fulham game, I don't think he really did make a mistake. But even in the game that he made the error, it was an outstanding performance, just with a very uncharacteristic and unlucky and unfortunate mistake in it. But he was excellent before and after.

“I think he's been, at this moment in time, Aston Villa’s signing of the season. It was well documented that they got decimated through PSR rules and financial rules and they did a very good job of redeveloping the squad. It's still not the same squad as they had last season and they needed the goalkeeper, especially at the beginning of the season.

“I think he's been brilliant. And now the other players are starting to gel and fit in and they're getting some results and performances. But at the beginning of the season, he was the standout signing.”

Villa have gone three games without a win in all competitions - dropping Premier League and Champions League points while crashing out of the Carabao Cup at the fourth-round stage.

United, given their defensive struggles this season, could be the perfect opponents against which to recapture that winning feeling. Suzuki will, however, need to be at his best once more if the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo are to be shut out.