da luck： Aston Villa could repeat a familiar mistake this summer if emerging reports are to be believed…
What’s the word?
da bet7k： According to John Percy at the Telegraph, Dean Smith is considering a bid to sign Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley on loan before the October 5th transfer deadline.
He claims that the Villa boss is prioritising the ‘No.8’ position as one of the final stages of their summer recruitment and that the £120k-per-week outcast is top of his list.
The Blues are likely to demand that the Midlanders pay his wages in full if they take him on a temporary basis but it is thought that Villa are reluctant to do so.
Transfermarkt value Barkley at £19.35m after his £15m move in 2018.
Shades of Drinkwater
And apprehensive they should be. It’s a very expensive gamble to make even if it’s only on loan.
In 21 top-flight appearances last season, the England international only managed to contribute to five goals, averaging a poor 1.9 shots and 1.1 key passes per game, via WhoScored.
He’s no longer the player that drew high acclaim at Everton, being compared to the likes of Paul Gascoigne and Michael Ballack and Alan Shearer’s comments from last season echo his inconsistencies.
“He’s a magnificent runner with the ball. In terms of being able to run with the ball with pace and power, you could compare him to Paul Gascoigne. Gascoigne was a powerful player, powerful runner with the ball, once he set off and went by people they didn’t catch him. Ross Barkley is the same. He’s a player with excellent technique and can score goals, he interprets the role behind the front player very well.”
Roy Hodgson, ex-England boss.
Following a wonder-strike against Liverpool, the BBC pundit said: “We see glimpses of him doing things like this but with his ability, he should be doing it on a regular basis. Why isn’t he doing that week in week out? The ability is without a doubt there. We don’t see it often enough.”
Whilst Roy Keane was scathing in his comments of the 26-year-old, claiming that his best position was “on the bench.”
Villa signed Danny Drinkwater from Chelsea during the January transfer window but he could only make four appearances before Smith sent him back to Stamford Bridge after a training ground altercation.
And whilst Barkley isn’t likely to get into it with another teammate, he is on high wages and would be a massive risk to even consider.
Surely their recruitment team can come up with better considering they signed John McGinn for £2.75m.
AND in other news, Aston Villa remain interested in “talismanic” £40m machine…