Exclusive:Aston Villa exclusive: Ian Maatsen talks to the Express & Star after signing new deal

That’s certainly the sense you get when sitting down with the left-back at Bodymoor Heath to discuss his new six-year contract.

An extended deal, for a player whose previous one still had almost four years to run, demonstrates the faith placed in him by Unai Emery and Maatsen is determined to repay it.

“This is my time. I want to show the qualities I have,” he says.

At 24, Maatsen is an old head on still young shoulders. It has been eight years since he left his family in the Netherlands and moved to England to join Chelsea and chase his dream of playing in the Premier League.

He has already packed an awful lot in, racking up more than 260 senior appearances including loans at Charlton, Coventry and Burnley, with a Champions League final appearance for Borussia Dortmund thrown in for good measure.

Shortly after that, in 2024, he became Villa’s then second most expensive ever signing when he joined for £37.5million but his first two seasons at the club, while featuring a Europa League winners medal, didn’t always run smoothly.

Though Maatsen reached a century of appearances for the club in last weekend’s 4-4 draw with Manchester United, nearly half of them have been from the bench and he admits to having experienced “tough moments” when regularly finding himself behind Lucas Digne in the pecking order.

Digne’s departure to Paris Saint-Germain last summer opened the door for the Netherlands international to finally establish himself as first-choice in his position.

“It was the first big move of my career coming here and a learning curve,” he reflects.

“Lucas is a top professional, full of qualities and I am happy I shared the dressing room with him and on the pitch too, learning a lot.

“Of course, it was a challenge but sometimes you have to be a little bit patient.

“I kept believing in myself, that I belong in the Premier League and could step up. Now I have the opportunity to play regular football, playing most of the games.

“It doesn’t change my outlook, you have to stay consistent, keep learning and be willing to improve every single day.”

Digne, while a rival, also proved a useful sounding board for the younger man.

Maatsen explains: “He could share the experiences he had and that helped me a lot in the tough moments when I wasn’t playing so much.

“I kept believing in myself and the team as well. The team and the coach pushed me to keep going. When the moment comes, you have to grasp it with both hands.”

Emery is clearly a huge influence and Maatsen, like the rest of Villa’s squad, was delighted to learn the manager is himself preparing to sign a new deal and commit his own future to the club.

Maatsen leaves no doubt the Spaniard is a tough taskmaster but like other team-mates before him, notes how the manager is prepared to give everything to those who buy into his methods.

“The biggest thing I have learned from him is that practice is key,” he says. “It is many repetitions on the pitch. The more repetitions you do, the more it will show in training and matches.

“At times it is very demanding. You have to make sure you are focused 100 per cent in work time.

“He is a very demanding coach but also he is willing to sacrifice his own energy to make sure everyone is on the same page and no-one is left behind.”

Maatsen, fresh from facing Lamine Yamal for the second time in his career, speaks of wanting to add a “fearless confidence” to his own game. He believes there is much more to give.

“If you want to be the best, you have to play against the best,” he says.

“I want to play in the top competitions in Europe, for one of the top teams in Europe, that is how we want to grow.”

He continues: “I think I have improved the most in understanding the way we play, understanding the defensive side of how the manager wants me and the team to defend.

“Now I want to add assists and goals to my game, helping the team when I go forward with my qualities and my linking up play.

“That is probably the next step, to give myself a little bit more fearless confidence on the pitch, to help the team and be important for the team.”

This is, as Maatsen observes, a “new team” but one with ambitions undimmed after a summer which saw several key players depart yet exciting new ones arrive.

“We have young players who are hungry to show themselves in the Premier League,” he says.

“They have settled very well and are performing fantastic. We just need to keep going. That is part of the coach as well.

“He believes in them and gives them the freedom to be themselves and also understand our standards in the team.”

Maatsen, who is due to become a father for the second time later this month, smiles when it is pointed out he will be 30 by the time his new deal expires.

A quietly-spoken man who describes himself as just being a "normal dad" when away from the spotlight, beneath his unassuming demeanour lies a burning ambition to realise both his potential and Villa’s.

“The way the club is growing and the vision it has, I feel this is the perfect place for me,” he says.

“Nothing has a limit. Of course, you always need to stay realistic but also everything is possible.

“We need to believe it is there for us. We have done it many times, surprising teams like PSG and even in the Premier League, beating the top sides.

“We can achieve a lot here. We just need to believe we are a quality team, which can play many systems.

“Sometimes we are maybe under-estimating ourselves. We are a good team and we have shown it many times. It should not be a surprise.”