View: French duo have points to prove at Aston Villa this summer, do not write them off
Aston Villa have a strong French contingent in the squad right now, but two of their forgotten men are fighting for their futures this summer.
Frederic Guilbert arrived at Villa in January 2019, though he was loaned back to Caen for the rest of the 2018/19 season, while Morgan Sanson was signed two years later in January 2021.
Both players have shown their talents at the highest level, but have found it difficult to nail down a spot in the Villa team since.
Guilbert enjoyed a bright debut campaign, making 25 appearances and emerging as one of the best tacklers in the Premier League, but he has not made a Premier League appearance since.
Sanson has been plagued with injuries since arriving at Villa and has been limited to just 19 Premier League appearances, only six of which have been starts.
However, both players are immensely talented and are set to come out fighting during Villa’s pre-season tour of Australia.
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Both players have failed to really make their mark during their time in the Midlands, but both can blame factors outside of their control.
Villa signed Guilbert when they were still a midtable Championship team with no real prospect of promotion but were a Premier League team by the time he touched down in B6.
He did not really put a foot wrong during the 2019/20 season as he battled Ahmed Elmohamady for a starting spot, but Dean Smith wanted a more attacking option so he signed Matty Cash.
Likewise, Sanson has been impressive when afforded the chance to play, but once he put his injury struggles behind him Steven Gerrard froze him out of the team.
However, Villa’s pre-season opener against Walsall saw Sanson come on for the second half looking fitter and more energetic than ever, reminding fans of his quality.
Guilbert missed the Walsall match due to a knock, but showed his talents by helping Strasbourg to a surprise European push when on loan at the French club last season.
Both players are deserving of a second chance and look like grasping it with both hands as they come out fighting this summer.
In other Aston Villa news, Keinan Davis’ move to Nottingham Forest could be back on.