In a recent interview with talkSPORT, former Premier League attacker Gabriel Agbonlahor urged Aston Villa to land Brentford striker Ivan Toney. Agbonlahor said,
“I could picture him (Toney) in a West Ham team or at Everton. I think he’s got what it takes to be in a team that’s fighting for Europe.
“Even somewhere like Aston Villa as a target man, playing with Watkins.”
Toney’s Impressive Form At The Brentford Community Stadium This Season
Toney has made a promising start to his life in Premier League football as he has already put in a few favorable displays for the Bees this season. The 25-year-old has found the back of the net twice and provided two assists in eight matches for Brentford so far in this campaign on all fronts.
The Northampton-born talent has been a consistent feature for Thomas Frank’s side after he averaged 0.9 tackles, 1.3 clearances, 2.3 shots, 1.4 key passes and 1.1 dribbles per game in the English top tier. However, he has been sloppy with his ball distribution based on his pass completion rate of 57.7% in the top tier of English football (stats via whoscored).
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Is Toney A Good Choice For Aston Villa?
Toney has decent pace in his locker which he can use to make some powerful runs in behind the opposition backline. He has a good work rate and doesn’t mind running the channels so that his teammates always have an outlet on the counter.
Standing at 1.85m, the English sensation can use his strength to win his fair share of aerial duels and can even score or create some important goals for his team in the final third. At the moment, Toney is still getting used to playing regular top-flight football with Brentford.
However, the 25-year-old is getting better with each season, so he could serve as a decent choice for the Villans next year. He will bring plenty of physicality and firepower to Aston Villa boss Dean Smith‘s attack. Plus, he could offer some serious competition for Danny Ings and Ollie Watkins for a regular starting place at Villa Park in the coming seasons.
At 25, Toney has still got a lot of room to grow as a striker, so Smith would be wise to engineer a move to bring him to the West Midlands club either in January or at the end of this campaign.
