Gabby Agbonlahor admits it’s ‘make or break’ for Aston Villa player as warning issued
Aston Villa’s deadline day business has undoubtedly left their squad in a stronger position for the remainder of the season.
Securing Harvey Elliott’s signature looks to be a fantastic piece of business, but the other two deals they did have many questions mark surrounding them.
The signing of Victor Lindelof drew criticism from Jeff Stelling and Ally McCoist despite the defender joining on a free transfer.
Jadon Sancho was labelled a “panic buy” by Gabby Agbonlahor, and the former Villa player feels this upcoming season is a big one for the winger.
Gabby Agbonlahor compares Jadon Sancho to Marcus Rashford
Whilst it is clear that Villa had to scramble to get another attacking body through the door on deadline day, Sancho is being questioned as to whether he is the player that Monchi should have recruited.
Speaking on talkSPORT on 4 September, Agbonlahor explained why this is “make or break” season for Sancho: “His contract’s up at the end of the season, I think Manchester United might have the option to an extension of one year.
“It’s make or break, if he doesn’t put in a top season for Aston Villa and do really well, your £350,000 a week will go down to £50,000 a week.”
- The concerns about Sancho’s move to Villa are more than valid
- At 25, the winger has seemingly already peaked and has failed to hit the heights he did in his first spell at Borussia Dortmund
- Sancho only averaged 57 minutes a game in the Premier League last season in his loan move to Chelsea
Agbonlahor also compared Sancho’s loan move to Rashford’s after he shared more concerns he had with the deal: “Rashford’s similar, one game unbelievable… next week ‘oh you’re not running around, you don’t fancy today?'”
“That’s been the problem with Sancho, and if he does that at Aston Villa, he won’t play.
“Some games they look interested and they’re running around and they’re pressing and they’re taking players on and the amount of times I’ve seen Sancho in the last three or four seasons get the ball and pass it back,” Agbonlahor added.
- READ MORE: Harvey Elliott’s Liverpool return is already earmarked, Aston Villa stay is not guaranteed
Gabby Agbonlahor questions Jadon Sancho’s commitment at Aston Villa already
This season will be the third season in a row that Sancho has found himself on a loan move away from Man United.
This has been another point of concern for Agbonlahor, who questions whether the winger will be fully committed during his time in B6.
“I’m hoping the manager can get more out of Sancho, but the problem is, when you watched him at Chelsea at times, maybe because it’s a loan deal, is he into it as much as he would be if he signed for a club?
“I hope so as a Villa fan,” Agbonlahor said.
To put it bluntly, Sancho has to be all in during his loan move at Villa Park, or his days of playing for clubs with the rich histories of Villa and Chelsea will be a thing of the past.
The Sancho deal also has the ability to make or break Villa’s season as a whole.
If the England international can rediscover his past form, Monchi will look like a genius, and Villa will likely finish in a European position.
If he flops, questions will be asked as to why Monchi took a risk on a player who hasn’t been at his best since 2021.
Only time will tell which of the two outcomes it will be, but the Villa faithful will certainly be hoping it is the former as opposed to the latter.
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