ONLY a year ago he was training with the youths at Celtic.
Fast forward to now and he has made his professional debut for a Premier League giant – as a replacement for their £50m summer signing.
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Aidan Borland joined Aston Villa from the Hoops last year for around £300,000.
He was spotted training with the first team whilst still 16 in March this year, with Villa skipper and Scotland hero John McGinn taking him under his wing.
It seems he made the most of that opportunity, with boss Unai Emery keeping a close eye on him ever since.
And he’s been rewarded for his progress with a debut for the club in the EFL Cup.
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Borland, 17, was introduced by Emery as a second half sub during Villa’s third round clash against Wycombe Wanderers at Adams Park.
The young midfielder played in the EFL Trophy last season with Aston Villa’s development squad and has made four appearances in Premier League 2 so far this season with the Under-21s.
He also played in the Young Villans’ Uefa Youth League opener against BSC Young Boys, captaining the side in a 2-1 defeat and earlier this month he played 45 minutes for Scotland’s Under-19s during a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands.
But tonight represented his first outing in a senior fixture.
He came on in the 62nd minute with his team 1-0 up and replaced the club’s most expensive transfer from this summer, Amadou Onana.
The match finished 2-1 with Jhon Duran scoring an 85th minute penalty before Richard Kone pulled one back for Wycombe in stoppage time.
Onana, 23, signed for Villa from Everton in July for a whopping £50m.
He has won 19 caps for Belgium and previously played for Lille, Hamburg and Hoffenheim.
Outside football, Onana has a unique side job – making RAP MUSIC under the pseudonym 24AM.
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