Rushian Hepburn-Murphy scored his first goal of the season for Aston Villa’s under-23 side after months on the sidelines due to injury.
There can surely be no question that Aston Villa’s defeat to Derby at the weekend hinted that Steve Bruce would love to strengthen their striker options during the January transfer window.
Bruce had both Scott Hogan and Gabby Agbonlahor available, but decided to not pick a striker in his starting lineup and instead use Josh Onomah to lead the line – which is arguably a major statement regarding how high he rates the two strikers he did have available, who have one league goal between them this term, considering that Villa did not score in their previous game.
Therefore, Bruce could surely do with having another goalscorer up his sleeve for this weekend’s game against another of their Championship play-off rivals Sheffield United.
Luckily for Villa, Rushian Hepburn-Murphy provided a glimpse of his quality in his first under-23 appearance of the season after a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to injury as he scored a brilliant opener on Monday to see Villa on their way to a 4-1 win over their West Brom counterparts.
Considering how long it has been since the 19-year-old has played any competitive games, it would have undoubtedly sent a great message to Bruce that he can help fill the void and lead the line at some stage over the Christmas period if he can stay fit.
The decision to put a lot of faith in Keinan Davis has certainly paid off handsomely for Villa this season, so perhaps after his goal, it is now time to give Hepburn-Murphy the same opportunity in the first-team.
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