Clear out some old furniture
Tim Sherwood has already spoken in the Birmingham Mail about the fact there could be more outgoings than incomings before the deadline, and in all honesty the squad could do with a bit of a clearout. Whilst players like Kieram Richardson and Charles N’Zogbia still bring a utility to the Villa squad in certain games; the likes of an aging Joe Cole and Libor Kozak have outstayed their welcome at the club. Cole’s declining physicality means that the versatility he once had is now gone, and with arrivals indicating a formation reliant on wing play Cole could now find himself well down the pecking order. Kozak also shares the same problem, despite Benteke leaving the arrivals of Jordan Ayew and Rudy Gestede mean the Czech player will not have many chances to impress, and a change of scenery might be beneficial to Villa and him personally.
Villa need a proven goal scorer
A controversial choice, but the disappointing start of Ayew; a reliance on an unproven Rudy Gestede and Gabby Agbonlahor whose inconsistency is only matched by his divisiveness doesn’t sound like a trio that can get 30 goals between them. In their defence, the spotlight has been magnified by the departure of Christian Benteke, yet Villa still need that goal-scoring spark in order to fire us up the table. A player such as Charlie Austin would be an excellent acquisition with his goalscoring exploits proven at Q.P.R. However, the £15 million price tag is a little off-putting, but he could be the difference between another relegation scrap and pushing towards mid-table.
Other options include Jordan Rhodes who would be able to fit that target man role or reviving a loan deal for Emmanuel Adebayor in order to add some extra goals to our tally.
Another catalyst in midfield wouldn’t go amiss
The most glaring missing piece in our squad is a deep lying playmaker to kickstart our attacks. Sherwood has brought in Jordan Veretout who will become a solid signing. However, his place seems to be further up the pitch, leaving us exposed in counter attack situations. A player who could sit back and build up play would not only prevent that being so apparent but, also give Veretout more confidence when moving forward.
A player in the mould of Lucas Leiva would be a great signing, with solid tackling and the ability to start a forward move. Whilst Former Real Madrid player, Fernando Gago could also prove a useful pickup, his vision and passing ability without pushing too far up the pitch would give us more control in games.
A match winner
This point is a bit of a kop out, however, whilst the current squad is a solid team – It lacks a player who can come on at 60 minutes and take the game by the scruff of the neck.
Either if it’s a midfielder with a bit of flair, a defender with the ability to close out a narrow win or a striker who you can rely on for goals would give the Villa squad a massive boost. He wouldn’t need to start week in week out so age wouldn’t be as much of an issue, therefore Leon Osman would represent a solid pick up, although he may find it difficult to part from Everton after such a long time at the club. Other players of a younger persuasion could lie in Derby’s Will Hughes, who bigger clubs seem to have gone cold on. Or Chelsea’s Lucas Piazon who has spent the past two years on loan, and with the wealth of midfield talent available to Jose Mourinho looks set to spend another year away from Stamford Bridge.
