Ross Barkley must take Aston Villa chance amid fresh Amadou Onana injury developments
Ross Barkley must now step up for Aston Villa after Amadou Onana returned from international duty early due to injury.
The Belgium international has suffered “a small muscle tear in the foot” which could potentially see him ruled out for three weeks [Sacha Tavolieri].
This has seen the 23-year-old return to Villa Park to begin his recovery but will leave Unai Emery’s side light in yet another position.
The Spaniard is already dealing with the early return of Ezri Konsa from England duty and now has midfield issues to deal with. This is where Barkley could come into his own in B6.
Ross Barkley must make Aston Villa step up after Amadou Onana injury
The ex-Everton star made the move to the Midlands in the summer after a terrific season with Luton Town in the Premier League last season.
He has picked up where he left off with the Hatters in claret and blue despite not being afforded many chances.
This has often seen the 30-year-old make substitute cameos in place of Onana when Emery looks to make a change in tactical approach mid-game.
One example of this came in the late draw against Bournemouth (26 October) where the Englishman came on at halftime and went on to get on the scoresheet.
Barkley’s performance was positive and was deserving of a goal, scoring with his second shot of the day against the Cherries [FotMob].
It was a useful performance from the former Chelsea man, maintaining a 78 per cent pass accuracy across his 23 attempts with four of those into the final third.
With 29 touches of the ball and two touches in the opposition box in that game, it is clear that this change could bring more attacking impetus to a struggling Villa side if called upon.
This was a more attacking showing, but there is no doubt that his defensive abilities are still there and make him an ideal replacement for the Belgian international.
This was on show in the Champions League against Bologna where he won 100 per cent of duels while also contributing with two blocks and one clearance.
As a result, Emery has to put faith in him to start the upcoming clash against Crystal Palace (23 November) and the midfielder has to step up and take the starting chance with both hands.
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