Unai Emery must utilise Ross Barkley to fix Aston Villa problem, Gabby Agbonlahor loves him
Unai Emery will be gutted after John McGinn suffered a hamstring injury as Aston Villa beat Wolves 3-1 on Saturday (21 September).
While the extent of the injury is not quite known, the Scottish midfielder is expected to miss the almighty Champions League clash against Bayern Munich [Birmingham Mail], which is a huge blow for the Villans.
Instead of moping about after losing the talented 29-year-old, Emery will be looking for someone to step up and fill the role, and Gabby Agbonlahor seems to have an idea of who that could be.
Speaking live via talkSPORT on Monday (23 September, 8:54am), he said: “He [Barkley] should be starting in that midfield. At the weekend [v Wolves], he was getting on the ball in that number six position, making things happen.
“His passing is top and I think he’s been an outstanding signing for Villa.”
Unai Emery to use Ross Barkley after John McGinn blow at Aston Villa?
Agbonlahor is absolutely spot on. Having come on as a substitute against Wolves, the 30-year-old completed 100 per cent of his passes, attempted a shot from outside the box and made two recoveries [FotMob].
Of course, few players can deliver the same impact as McGinn, who ranks in the top 84 percentile for non-penalty goals, the top 76 percentile for assists and the top 92 percentile for progressive carries [FBref].
However, with Emery desperate to find a solution to the Scot’s injury, Barkley is looking more and more like the key.
The 30-year-old has played just 117 minutes of football since arriving at Villa Park this summer, but with an assist already to his name, he must be called upon for the foreseeable future.
Barkley was just as consistent against Everton, a game in which he claimed his only assist of the season so far, completing 98 per cent of his passes as well as 100 per cent of his long balls, while also making three recoveries [FotMob].
He is certainly ready to be thrown into the starting XI. It is just down to Emery whether he trusts the midfielder to handle McGinn’s role.
In other Aston Villa news, Ezri Konsa has emerged as a new hero as Troy Deeney shares a new England admission.
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