Ex-Aston Villa employee slams John McGinn, tells Unai Emery to be careful
Villa News is delighted to welcome aboard our brilliant new columnist Bryan King, the former goalkeeper who spent over 10 years as a scout at Aston Villa and 28 years in total in first-team scouting roles. Bryan also spent six years on Tottenham’s recruitment team and eight years scouting at Everton…
Bryan King has warned Aston Villa manager Unai Emery not to overuse his quality players this season, with the club currently “off the boil.”
The Midlands outfit are currently involved in the Premier League, FA Cup and Europa Conference League, having been knocked out of the League Cup back in September.
King added that captain John McGinn has perhaps been affected by the number of minutes he has played so far this season.
Speaking to Villa News, King said: “The thing with McGinn is, from the games I’ve seen him play in recently, he’s getting caught with the ball, he’s trying to take it on that extra yard or trying to beat that extra man, and he’s getting into positions where he’s having the ball taken off him, when before he wasn’t.
“He’s been there for over five years now, Steve Bruce brought him in. He’s a good player, but the pace of the game seems to have caught up with him at the moment. Whether it’s tired legs, playing so many games, I don’t know.
“I think Emery does rotate regarding Europe, because the opposition early on won’t have been as strong as what it is going to be in the latter stages.
“This is a man who has successfully won in Europe many times, so I think it would be difficult to question the way he’s doing it.
“What he has got to be careful of is overusing his quality players. Aston Villa seem to have gone off the boil at the minute.”
Villa have impressed under Emery this season, with the club currently challenging the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal for the Premier League title. They also have a chance of silverware in Europe after topping their Europa Conference League group.
And Villa will also be keen to progress in the FA Cup, with their next match coming in the fourth round of the famous competition against Chelsea on Friday (26 January).
In other Aston Villa news, one exit-linked Villa man recently shone with an 86% display, Emery will be delighted.
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