I think it makes sense to KISS, keep the receiver/integrated choice to more practical considerations. Does it possess the requisite power for the specific speakers you've chosen with your particular circumstances/room/listening level? Does it have the analog/phono/digital/streaming connectivity to accommodate your use now and possibly in the future? Does it have your preferred degree of tuneability/eq/bass management?
Speaker choice will dictate power requirements, and while your small room greatly mitigates power concerns to almost being a non-issue, don't put the cart before the horse. Choose the speakers first. This is by far your most important decision.
You know what sources you need to accommodate. My own sense of parsimony steers me to a one box solution, but to each his own.
"Tuneability" is an area that Stereo kit is sorely lacking in general. Typically no bass management and fairly useless treble and bass controls, if even those on some kit. Now, none of that may be of any practical concern for you; well sorted speakers won't need eq/tweaking, and if you have no plans for a sub, it opens your options.
But that doesn't change the nature of our hearing, that at lower volumes we are far less sensitive to extreme low and high frequencies. Loudness compensation eq is ubiquitous in AVR land, but extremely rare in stereo kit. The Yamaha you're considering has it, but the Brio does not. AVRs have it ("dynamicEQ", "YPAOvolume").
Only you can decide what sort of features and flexibility will suit your particular needs. I wouldn't rule out valid options (such as an AVR) in lieu of pricey but austere kit your friend sells.
Also, as an aside, I would throw any tube amp type into the "tuneability" category, although any audible differences, if they in fact exist, are fixed and non-defeatable. Sound processing should take place in the processor, not the amp. So the Rogue or any other expensive tube amp is a potentially wasteful digression from the pursuit of music, and not advisable unless you go all the way down that rabbit hole, learn about it, and build it yourself.
I suspect your friend can still probably accommodate a more practical, "music first" approach to gear selection, although he may get a lower spiff.
