Unai Emery ready to offer Aston Villa defender Calum Chambers January exit – report
Aston Villa defender Calum Chambers will be offered a transfer away from the club by Unai Emery this month, according to the Daily Mirror.
Chambers, 28, was snapped up by Steven Gerrard in last season’s winter window from Arsenal but has struggled to impact proceedings since the move.
The centre-back has made just one start so far this season, with Tyrone Mings, Ezri Konsa and the returning Diego Carlos all preferred to the Englishman.
Emery, who has already signed Jhon Duran and Spanish defender Alex Moreno this window, is looking to trim down his squad and shape it to his needs in his first window at the helm.
The Daily Mirror report in their print edition (Saturday 21 January, page 59) said: “Unai Emery is ready to show Calum Chambers the door for a second time as his Aston Villa overhaul ramps up.
“Villa’s Spanish coach loaned Chambers to Fulham for the 2018-29 season after taking over at Arsenal. Chambers’ future is again in doubt after making just three appearances since Emery became boss.”
Playing style
Chambers was a smart signing for Villa last season, considering the price they signed him for and the ease with which they got the deal over the line, but Emery clearly isn’t a fan of the versatile defender.
The Spaniard gave Chambers a shot to impress in the warm-weather training camp in Dubai during the World Cup break, but he looked extremely shaky and didn’t seem comfortable passing out from the back – as Emery always demands from his teams.
When all Villa’s centre-backs are fit, the Englishman finds himself way down the pecking order, and at this stage of his career, he will want more regular football.
It makes sense, therefore, to sanction his exit, possibly alongside Southampton loanee Jan Bednarek, and reinvest in a ball-playing centre-back who can fulfil Emery’s needs.
There will be no lack of suitors for Chambers, as the defender has never placed a step wrong while donning the claret and blue top, but he, unfortunately, doesn’t have the quality to keep up with Emery’s steep learning curve.
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