Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor has hailed Ross Barkley for the form he has shown since joining the Midlands club on loan from Chelsea.
The 26-year-old, who has made 33 appearances for England during his career, joined Villa on a season-long loan deal a few weeks ago.
Impressing since his arrival, Barkley has two goals and one assist in his opening seven games for Villa, gaining himself a respectable average match rating of 7.62 out of 10 from WhoScored.com.
Such performances have seen Barkley receive plenty of praise and Agbonlahor has joined in the acclaim, telling Football Insider:
“I think he sees Aston Villa as a team where he’s going to play.
“He was quiet against Southampton but he was selected against Arsenal so he’s got the support of the manager that even if he has an off game, he’ll still play the next game.
“I think that that’s quite important for players to know that you’ve got the backing of the manager and the manager plays football which suits your style and also you’re playing every week.
“At Chelsea, he was in and out of the team I don’t know why he’d want to stay at a club where he’s in and out of the side.
“It’s not like Villa are going to be fighting relegation. They’re gonna be fighting at the high end of the table this season so that’s where I’m sure he would love to be playing football and fighting for.”
Barkley has been a large part of Villa’s excellent start to the season, which has seen Dean Smith’s side beat the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal to sit sixth in the Premier League table.
Read Aston Villa Verdict
Barkley’s form has been very impressive this season and the midfielder can count himself unfortunate not to get in Gareth Southgate’s England squad this time round.
A call-up could on the cards in the future if he continues to impress, and what he could achieve with this Villa side remains an optimistic thought.
Still relatively young at the age of 26, Barkley’s move to Villa, albeit on loan, is proving to be the perfect step for his career.
