Carlos Sánchez says he's staying at Villa in exclusive interview

A massive storm that caused a significant stoppage in play drenched tens of thousands at Chicago's Soldier Field on Wednesday night, but Carlos Sánchez was the first to receive an early bath.

Booked 41 minutes into Colombia's semifinal match against Chile, the Villa man found himself in trouble with the referee just 16 minutes into the match later, although in real time it was nearly three hours (165 minutes) after his first yellow.

Sánchez's national team is in action again, taking on the United States and Villa teammate Brad Guzan for third place at Copa América Centenario this Saturday. The curly haired midfielder will miss out due to a fresh suspension, although Tim Howard may replace Guzan anyway, as Howard hasn't played so far in this tournament.

I caught up with Sánchez after the match, and asked him about his future with Aston Villa. It was a very brief chat, but he was the only player from either team to answer any questions in English on the way to the team bus. Here's what he had to say.

Jack Grimse: "Carlos, do you think you’re staying at Aston Villa this summer?"

Carlos Sánchez: "Yeah, after the Copa America I will go to Aston Villa, because that’s my team. I have two years (of my) contract with that, so I need to be back."

JG: "Are you excited, with the new ownership and manager coming in, do you think that is a new chance for you?"

CS: "Yeah, because it’s a new start. So I’m very excited."

Admittedly it wasn't much, but it sounds like he may be sticking around, if only because there isn't another team out there that can offer him a better contract. Sánchez isn't the only Villa player hoping for a fresh start under Roberto Di Matteo as the Tony Xia era begins in Birmingham.

The full interview audio can be heard on the next episode of the Holtecast.

Are you happy that Sánchez is likely to stick around B6? Let us know in the comments!