Aston Villa surprise speedster Tyrone Mings makes Premier League quickest starting XI
Although Tyrone Mings is renowned for his strength in ground duels and aerial ability from set pieces, it has been revealed that the Aston Villa centre-back has a deceptively quick turn of speed.
The 30-year-old has been a mainstay in Unai Emery’s side since the manager’s arrival at Villa Park in October, being nominated for the March Premier League player of the month award following a run of three clean sheets in four games.
Mings was unfortunate to miss out on an England call-up in the most recent international break, but the defender cannot be ignored for much longer after adding yet further layers to his game.
As revealed on Twitter by Squawka, the former Villa captain has recorded the second top speed out of every centre-back this season, reaching a high of 34.98km/h.
Mings only sits behind Brentford centre-back Kristoffer Ajer, who recorded a top speed of 35.53km/h – in a very surprising but equally enjoyable stat reveal.
Mings joins the likes of wingers Mykhailo Mudryk and Anthony Gordon, as well as Nottingham Forest speedster Brennan Johnson and Liverpool marquee summer signing Darwin Nunez in the fastest players starting line-up.
Perhaps it is Mings’ 6ft 5in frame that deceives attackers, but the England international is, in fact, the eighth fastest defender across the whole of the Premier League.
Adding pace to his already brimming bow makes Mings an almost undroppable player in Unai Emery’s plans at Villa Park while adding further credence to the theory that the returning Diego Carlos may be a direct fight with Ezri Konsa for the remaining centre-back spot.
So far this season, Mings stood toe to toe with the likes of lightning-quick Erling Haaland in the 1-1 draw at Villa Park but will face a tough task when lining up against Chelsea’s Mudryk this Saturday (1 April) when the two Europe-chasing outfits square off at Stamford Bridge.
Quick centre-backs are a premium in the Premier League in recent years, with defenders such as Harry Maguire being found out by their lack of speed, so possessing a defender of Mings’ ilk is a huge bonus to Aston Villa moving into the future.
In other Aston Villa news, a senior first-team player is now likely to be ruled out for many months with a potential Achilles rupture.