Jhon Duran takes leave of absence at his third club in a year as career takes another twist
Jhon Duran, the former Premier League striker and teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo, has agreed to a leave of absence from his sixth professional club.
The 22-year-old striker arrived at Aston Villa as a highly-rated young talent from Chicago Fire and the Colombian quickly made a name for himself with the West Midlands outfit.
Once described by Villa captain John McGinn as 'a bit nuts', Duran developed a reputation for scoring spectacular goals in big moments.
Two years ago, Duran scored the goals against Liverpool that earned Villa a Champions League place. He scored the only goal of their win over Bayern Munich, beating Manuel Neuer from distance at Villa Park.
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They meet again on Friday with the same prize on the line but Duran's Villa career is long over.
After threatening to unseat Ollie Watkins as Unai Emery's first choice striker, Duran was sold for a huge fee to Al Nassr, where he joined five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo in the Saudi Pro League.
Duran is still registered with the Riyadh club but has only played 13 league matches for them, sharing the pitch with Ronaldo for a total of 1086 minutes in all competitions.
He was loaned to Turkish side Fenerbahce, where he struggled with osteoarthritis and clashed with then-manager Jose Mourinho after arriving late for the team's pre-season training camp in Portugal.
"It's disrespectful," said Mourinho. "There are clear rules here, and anyone who doesn't follow them will face consequences. We'll talk to him when he shows up, if he does."
While Duran did eventually get moving in Istanbul, including an appearance against Villa in the Europa League, he was a shadow of his former self and moved on loan again, this time to Russian Premier League side Zenit St Petersburg.
Duran's future in doubt after sudden Zenit departure
The Colombian is on loan in St Petersburg until the end of June, after which his next destination is anyone's guess. His contract with Al Nassr runs to the summer of 2030.
After one goal, one start and six league appearances for Zenit, Duran has been granted a leave of absence from the league leaders.
A short statement from Zenit on Thursday said: "The club management and the Colombian striker have agreed on a leave of absence from the club due to personal circumstances. Details of his return date will be announced in the near future."
Duran is a player of obvious ability and was genuinely entertaining during his time in England, but it's already clear that he is finding it difficult to recapture that essence.
The specific circumstances of his leave of absence are not known but it must be hoped that he's able to get back on track, both on and off the pitch.
Topics: Football, Zenit, Fenerbahce, Al Nassr
Chris Nee