Aston Villa: Leander Dendoncker won’t complete permanent Napoli transfer amid loan ‘disaster’
Leander Dendoncker won’t complete a permanent transfer to Napoli from Aston Villa this summer, according to Dan Bardell.
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano tweeted on 24 March that the Serie A champions will not activate their £7.7million option-to-buy clause on the Belgian international.
That means the 28-year-old looks set to return to Villa in the summer, where he will either fight to regain his place in Unai Emery’s side or push for a permanent move away from Villa Park.
Bardell believes the midfielder’s loan spell in Italy has been a “disaster” as he suggested he could now be playing for the Villans given the injury crisis over the past few months.
Speaking exclusively to Villa News, Bardell said: “I think this loan move has been a bit of a disaster all round. He’s gone to Napoli because he wasn’t getting any minutes at Villa and has barely played.
“He’s now gone and Villa have had injury problems, so I think had he been here, there’s a chance he would’ve started some games.
“Villa have saved the money on wages for six months but, overall, I just think it’s been a disaster for the player and Villa.
“Napoli obviously don’t really fancy him. It’s not good, he won’t be going there permanently.
“Maybe one of the reasons Villa sent him there is because, if he played well, his value could have gone up.
“That’s not happened, so there’s really been no upside to this loan move so far. It’s not really one anyone is going to look back on with any fondness.”
Could Leander Dendoncker regain place at Aston Villa?
It seems unlikely that Dendoncker could force his way back into the reckoning at Villa after deciding to leave in the January transfer window.
As Bardell points out, he could now be playing for Emery’s side if he had stuck around, having played just 21 minutes for Napoli.
It appears as though the move hasn’t really paid off for anyone and it will be interesting to see what approach the Villans take with him on his return to Villa Park this summer.
In other Aston Villa news, a journalist has raged at the “unfair” criticism he’s seen aimed at a Villa star.
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