In a recent report, Sky Sports mentioned that Aston Villa are set to rival Brentford for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain this summer. It has been claimed that the Villans are also facing competition from the MLS, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in the race to land the former Liverpool talent.
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s Lack Of Game Time At Merseyside Last Season
The 29-year-old struggled to prove his worth at Anfield last season as he failed to be consistent for the Reds in the Premier League. Oxlade-Chamberlain played in just 13 matches for the Merseyside club in the previous campaign, finding the back of the net just once in the process across multiple competitions.
The English sensation saw a lot of game time come off the bench which explains why he only averaged 0.8 shots, 0.6 key passes and 0.6 dribbles per 90 minutes in Premier League football. He also struggled to be accurate with his ball distribution after completing only 73% of his attempted passes in the English first division (stats via whoscored).
Oxlade-Chamberlain is a free agent at the moment. Hence, it is no surprise that so many top-flight clubs including Aston Villa are showing interest in recruiting him this summer.
What Will Oxlade-Chamberlain Bring To Aston Villa?
Oxlade-Chamberlain can strike the ball purely and with a lot of power from long range. He is a good dribbler with the ball as well and has got the vision to engineer a few decent chances for others around him in the final third.
The English talent knows the Premier League well by now and won’t take much time to settle into life at Villa Park. However, he has been quite injury-prone in recent years which makes him a risky option for the Villans to pursue this summer.
Oxlade-Chamberlain will bring more energy and dynamism to Unai Emery‘s midfield and help the West Midlands club push for a top-half finish in the Premier League next season.
