Aston Villa ace hails 'inspirational' loan stars ahead of Paris Saint-Germain clash

Villa head to the French capital for the first leg of their quarter-final tie with midfielder Onana claiming Unai Emery’s team are “dreaming big” after a run of seven wins in all competitions.

Asensio and Rashford, who both arrived at the end of the January transfer window, have played their part, contributing 11 combined goals and five assists since arriving at the club.

Eight of those goals belong to Spain international Asensio, a three-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid who is available to face parent club PSG.

Speaking on Uefa’s magazine show Off-Pitch about the pair, Onana said: “Both of them are doing really well. You could see straight away when they came in the direct impact they have had.

“Both of them played at the highest possible level and even for us, young players, it’s inspiring to learn from them on a daily basis.”

Boss Emery, who will return to PSG for the first time since leaving them after a two-year spell in charge in 2018, has acknowledged his former club are favourites to progress. 

But Onana says Villa’s players are brimming with belief and confident they can cause a shock.

He continued: “To be honest I believe so strongly in the team and what we have built this season, the manager’s ideas that I dream big.

“That is what puts the fire in me. These competitions are the ones you want to be playing in. As a young kid this was a dream come true, so I am living it to the fullest.”

PSG caused a surprise of their own by knocking out Liverpool on penalties in the last-16.

Onana continued: “Are we dreaming? Yes and no because I think we have the quality as a team to be where we are but obviously, we have to be realistic.

“PSG is, for me, one of the contenders for this Champions League so it is definitely going to be hard.

“As a player you need to go into that game thinking we are good and we are going to win it.

“But yeah, obviously again this is PSG we are talking about. We need to be definitely ready.”

Teenage prospect Rory Wilson has signed a new contract at Villa.

The highly-rated 19-year-old striker, who joined from Rangers for £400,000 in 2022, has agreed a two-year extension with the option of a further year, following lengthy talks.

Villa academy boss Mark Harrison said: “We are delighted to have agreed a new contract with Rory. 

“He has obviously got a proven track record of scoring goals at Academy level and we firmly believe that this will continue at senior level.

“Rory has always been very committed to his development and has shown that consistently throughout his time with us. 

“He has undoubted potential, so we look forward to supporting him into transitioning into a first-team player at Aston Villa."