Unai Emery has this week added a Dutch international to his squad with the capture of Donyell Malen.
The former Arsenal youth player, who scored 13 goals for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga last season, has joined Aston Villa for a fee in the region of £20m.
Fantasy Premier League (FPL) have since listed Malen as a £5.5m midfielder, piquing the interest of bargain-hunting Fantasy managers.
However, there are a lot of question marks surrounding Malen, who is still only 25, which we’ll explore in this Scout Report.
DONYELL MALEN: THE HISTORY
| Season | Team | Competition | Starts (sub apps) | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | Borussia Dortmund | Bundesliga | 6 (8) | 3 | 0 |
| 2023/24 | Borussia Dortmund | Bundesliga | 21 (6) | 13 | 1 |
| 2022/23 | Borussia Dortmund | Bundesliga | 22 (4) | 9 | 6 |
| 2021/22 | Borussia Dortmund | Bundesliga | 20 (7) | 5 | 3 |
| 2020/21 | PSV Eindhoven | Eredivisie | 26 (6) | 19 | 8 |
| 2019/20 | PSV Eindhoven | Eredivisie | 14 | 11 | 2 |
| 2018/19 | PSV Eindhoven | Eredivisie | 6 (25) | 10 | 4 |
| 2017/18 | PSV Eindhoven | Eredivisie | 0 (4) | 0 | 0 |
| 2017/18 | Jong PSV | Eerste Divisie | 18 (4) | 13 | 2 |
| 2017/18 | Arsenal | PL2 | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 |
| 2016/17 | Arsenal | PL2 | 6 (5) | 3 | 2 |
*Domestic leagues only
Donyell Malen started his career in the Ajax academy, before becoming part of the Arsenal youth system in 2015.
However, after a couple of years in north London, he returned to the Netherlands to sign for PSV Eindhoven.
Malen came through the ranks at the Dutch giants and subsequently became one of the most sought-after forwards in Europe, racking up 79 attacking returns (55 goals and 24 assists) in 116 appearances in all competitions.
His form earned him a £25m move to Borussia Dortmund, where he scored 39 goals in 132 appearances and helped the club to the 2023/24 Champions League final, in which he appeared as a second-half substitute.
That said, his time in Germany was full of ups and downs, with consistency an issue throughout.
“He has shown his potential to be a very good forward on many occasions. At the same time, he’s been a disappointment for long periods as well. When he had his good form, he was one of the best strikers in the Bundesliga, but he also had weeks and even months when he didn’t score at all and could not be found anywhere on the pitch.
“I’m pretty sure he can compete in the Premier League, but for Dortmund, it’s also a disappointment because there were times when his value was up to €40m-€45m and now they’ll be happy just to get back what they invested.” – Jurgen Koers, who covers Borussia Dortmund for newspaper Ruhr Nachrichten (RN), via The Athletic
Malen also has 41 senior caps and nine goals for the Netherlands.
WHERE MALEN FITS IN AT VILLA
“I’m a forward. I try to create, score goals, give assists and just give the stadium a buzz. I try to do special things.” – Donyell Malen
Malen is a versatile forward who can play on either flank or behind the striker.
Pacy and direct, Edin Terzic and Nuri Sahin predominantly used him from the right at Dortmund, which is where he will probably line up for Aston Villa.
Leon Bailey (£6.2m) has, of course, struggled to replicate his best form this term, with just one goal and two assists in 17 league appearances.
It’s a far cry from last year’s output when the Jamaican racked up 21 attacking returns (10 goals and 11 assists).
Bailey’s lack of form has clearly impacted Villa’s ability to create from the right this season, with assists conspicuous by their absence from that side of the pitch, so Malen’s arrival should add value.
Malen could also be deployed as a No 10/second striker, in behind Ollie Watkins (£8.9m) or Jhon Duran (£5.8m).
Regardless of position, however, Malen’s runs beyond the defensive line will be crucial – no Premier League team has registered more than Aston Villa’s 54 through balls this season.
“He’s usually playing as a number seven and sometimes as a number 11 on the left side, while he can also play as a number 10.
“In the attacking third, he’s always close to getting into the opponent’s box to score goals and get assists. We will need a player like him trying to threaten the opponent in behind.” – Unai Emery on Donyell Malen
DONYELL MALEN: THE FPL PROSPECTS
Malen is an intriguing Fantasy prospect, but we will have to bide our time to see just how prominent he is in the starting XI.
After all, Villa are well stocked in his positions, with Bailey, Jacob Ramsey (£5.4m), Morgan Rogers (£5.5m) and John McGinn (£5.2m) all operating in similar areas of the pitch.
Should he nail down a regular starting spot, and that’s a big if, there are encouraging signs: a shot every 24.8 minutes in last season’s Bundesliga – similar to Duran (23.3) and Watkins (27.1) in 2024/25 – hint at a player not afraid to back himself.
A key pass every 81.2 minutes is poor, however, especially for a winger.
His ability to claim Fantasy assists could at least compensate for that, not only through shot rebounds but also fouls won, with his pace being a real issue for opposition defences.
Malen’s previous inconsistency is another concern.
For now, he is a name to monitor from a Fantasy perspective, at least while we assess the competition for places at Villa Park.
FPL have at least priced him up generously, so Malen could enter the thinking as a cheap midfielder further down the line.
That said, he’s identically priced to Rogers at the time of writing, one of the standout picks in his bracket averaging 4.7 points per match this season.
As a result, there is very little reason to go for Malen over Rogers any time soon, and it’ll probably take something very special to change our minds.
