Aston Villa could be in line to part ways with the prized forward Gabriel Agbonlahor next summer. According to recent reports coming out of Birmingham, the English speedster is among a whole host of players who are set to leave the West Midlands club at the end of the season as free agents. Agbonlahor is among the likes of John Terry, Chris Samba and Mark Bunn ready to depart the club with their contracts running out at the end of the current campaign.
Agbonlahor has found game time limited at Villa Park this season and has fallen down the pecking order under manager Steve Bruce with Albert Adomah, Robert Snodgrass and Scott Hogan all ahead of him playing in the Villa starting eleven. Agbonlahor’s contract has barely been mentioned during the course of this campaign which probably tells the story. The former Premier League striker has made six appearances for Villa this term and was excluded from the Villans squad which faced Birmingham City, despite his outstanding record in the Second City derby.
The 31-year-old has scored one goal and provided one assist in the Skybet Championship this season. At 31, he could look to switch clubs in search of greener pastures in the coming years to try and reignite his goalscoring touch in English football.
Steve Bruce’s side are in fantastic form in the English Championship and have won their last seven league matches which have helped them in their quest to secure an automatic promotion into the Premier League at the end of the campaign. They currently find themselves in 2nd place in the league standings, with a tally of 59 points in 31 league matches. They are well on their way to earn a playoffs spot at the end of the season but Steve Bruce could look to push his players to try and consolidate their current position with Derby County and Cardiff City hot on their heels going into the final stretch of the season.
The departure of Agbonlahor could deplete some of Steve Bruce’s squad depth but it is a situation that could benefit all parties involved. The English forward has been a loyal servant of the West Midlands club since joining them in the winter of 2005. He has gone on to make 390 appearances for Villa during his playing career, scoring 86 goals and providing 57 assists in all competitions. It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the future of Agbonlahor and whether he ends up leaving Villa Park next summer.
