It has now been a few years since the likes of Ashley Young, James Milner and Stewart Downing departed the club.
In the years that have passed since, Alex McLeish paid £9.5 million in 2011 to sign an in-form Charles N’Zogbia from Wigan, who has since failed to live up to expectations.
Despite a couple of good performances under Tim Sherwood at the back end of last season, N’Zogbia as underperformed for a majority of the time he has been at Aston Villa.
Furthermore, the experiment of trying Alexander Tonev and Leandro Bacuna in wide positions illustrates the lack of wide players at the club since those three high-profile departures mentioned above.
More recently, Scott Sinclair has flattered to deceive and Carles Gil has shown an inability to play as a wide player. Couple this with the inconsistency of the inexperienced Jack Grealish, it is evident that a natural winger is required. Many argue that Adama Traore deserves a full start, and I would agree with this, but as he demonstrated at Carrow Road, he might be a one-trick pony with his push and run style of play.
Having said that, Adama delivered two great balls into the box against Norwich, but unfortunately, our only target man was still warming the bench. Whether Gestede would have got anywhere near the crosses, however, is debatable, as he is failing to show up to his £7 million price tag.
Not only would wingers allow us to have further attacking prowess, but they are fundamental defensively. Leicester City for example, have Danny Simpson at right back who many would argue is an average defender. However, having watched Leicester recently, it is clear to see how often their wingers, Mahrez and Albrighton, track back to defend and support their fullbacks.
This cannot be said for Aston Villa. I do not believe that Alan Hutton is a terrible defender, but without the wide players tracking back, he has found himself recently out of position attempting to act not only as our wide man but also as a defender.
Our three most recent managers, Lambert, Sherwood and Garde seem to have adopted a playing through the middle style which has not benefitted the front line.
YouTube: Ashley Young – Your Loss Capello ☆HD 1080p☆
