Alejandro Garnacho is yet to start for Aston Villa since joining on loan, and the club has no clause to cancel the deal early, leaving the Argentine likely to remain at Villa Park for the season.
Loan deal without exit clause
Garnacho, who signed for Chelsea last summer but struggled to make a consistent impact, was allowed to leave for the season and joined Villa. However, the former Manchester United player has found himself on the bench, with minutes not forthcoming.
He has played three times for Villa this season but has not come off the substitutes' bench in their last three games against Nottingham Forest, Tottenham and Coventry City in the Carabao Cup, where Emery fielded a heavily rotated team.
Recruitment concerns
The situation has led to suggestions that Emery is not convinced by Garnacho and may not see him as a major part of his plans. The Telegraph reports that Chelsea do not have a January recall clause, and Villa are not thought to have an early exit clause, meaning the player is likely stuck there for the season.
The only change would involve Chelsea and Villa agreeing to terminate the loan in January, but one club cannot make that call on their own. Teenage stars George Hemmings and Ibrahim Mbaye, a summer signing from PSG, have both been used ahead of Garnacho.
Elliott comparison
This will call into question Emery's eye when it comes to recruitment. Despite his success, a number of his top players are those he inherited, with a host of his signings not paying off. In their Europa League final win, the starting XI boasted more players signed by predecessor Dean Smith than by Emery himself.
Last season's move for Harvey Elliott was a glaring example of a switch that failed to work out for either club or the player. Elliott, off the back of being named the best player at the U21 Euros, moved from Anfield to Villa Park.
The agreement included an obligation to buy for £35million if Elliott played 10 league games, but he would only play four times, handing the playmaker just 109 minutes of Premier League action. Emery would concede that the failed loan was "embarrassing for everyone involved".
The Spaniard said back in May, before the loan was due to end: "My apologies for Harvey Elliott are, every day, in my mind. We have our responsibility and Liverpool have their responsibility. How the season has gone has been difficult."
