Aston Villa are reportedly lining up a summer move for Bristol City left-back Joe Bryan, who has ripped up the Championship this season.
It doesn’t reflect well on Neil Taylor that he has been recently kept out of the Aston Villa starting XI by Alan Hutton – and the right-footed Scot is hardly a natural left-back.
Taylor, who joined Villa in January of last year in a deal that saw Jordan Ayew go to Swansea City, has started 21 Championship games this season but his fitness and form has fluctuated at times, though he did put in impressive displays in wins against Sunderland and Wolves in the last week.
But reports in The Sun reporting that Aston Villa are chasing arguably the Championship’s most impressive left-back across 2017/18 should have Taylor fretting about his immediate future in the Midlands.
It is understood that Aston Villa chief scout Tony Coton has been keeping a close eye on the brilliant Bristol City flyer Joe Bryan. And although he’d be too expensive for Villa in the Championship, promotion to the Premier League could finance a deal for a player who The Mirror believe is valued at about £7 million.
Bristol City have had an excellent season and Bryan has been one of the stars. The 24-year-old has three goals and two assists in the Championship, but is best remembered for his wonderstrike in the EFL Cup shock against Manchester United in December.
And though Taylor has his qualities, you’d be hard pushed to find anyone who would take him ahead of Bryan right now.
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