View: Aston Villa miss trick with poor treatment of Frederic Guilbert as January exit now likely
Aston Villa and their treatment of defender Frederic Guilbert will go down as one of the biggest letdowns in an otherwise successful few seasons at Villa Park since promotion to the Premier League in 2019.
Guilbert, 27, has not started for The Villans in the league since the 2019/20 season and has been sent out on loan twice during this period – joining French club Strasbourg in previous windows.
The marquee signing of Matty Cash at the beginning of the 2020 season all but demoted Guilbert to a spot warming the bench at Villa Park, and ever since, he has struggled to impact proceedings at B6.
A permanent move away from the club in January has been confirmed by the defender himself, with Villa likely to accept an offer in the region of £2 million, according to L’Equipe, and reported via Birmingham Live.
Speaking to Alsa Sports, the 27-year-old said: “When Steven Gerrard arrived, he told me I had two weeks to prove myself. (Then) I played barely 45 minutes in six or seven matches.
“I made the decision to shut up and keep working. Because, if I yelled, it wouldn’t have changed anything. And now I’m looking to the future.
“With Unai Emery, I have never had a discussion. I can’t stay in this situation forever. We are studying the possibilities with my entourage; whether it is a loan with an option to buy or a straight transfer.
“It’s no secret (that I’m available for transfer). For the moment, there is nothing, but I’m open to suggestions. I’m on the market. What matters to me is to play and find pleasure quickly.”
This represents a disappointing end to the Frenchman’s stint in the west midlands, with Guilbert quickly becoming a fan favourite with the Claret and Blue faithful upon his arrival at the club from Caen.
He made 25 appearances under Dean Smith in his debut season at the club and played a vital cog in Villa’s promotion to the Premier League, proving himself an ever-willing threat at right-back.
It wasn’t just his tough-tackling that fans warmed to, but the passion and desire he showed for the shirt every week without fail.
If a 50/50 needed winning, there was no better man for the job, and he certainly had an ‘Aaron Wan-Bissaka nature’ about his one-on-one defending.
A knee injury blighted the beginning of his 2020 campaign, and he was quickly made the forgotten man, with both Ezri Konsa and Ahmed Elmohamady preferred to him in the right-back berth.
The subsequent arrival of Villa’s “Polish Cafu” at the end of the season spelt the end of Guilbert’s Villa career as he knew it, with the Frenchman securing his first loan move back home to Strasbourg in January 2021.
And despite quickly earning plaudits for his performances with Strasbourg – scoring once and providing four assists in 13 league games – and Villa releasing Elmohamady from the club, he wasn’t favoured within the club’s hierarchy.
This season, the defender has been training with Villa’s Under-21 side this season, playing three times in the Premier League 2 as he struggled to impress both Gerrard and Emery.
Whether it was his blunt-speaking nature or a fallout behind the scenes that hindered his playing chances, the unharmonious relationship with Guilbert is a disappointing sight to see.
He deserved better, and hopefully, a move away from Villa Park can help reignite this enigmatic Frenchman’s stuttering career.
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