Report explains why Birkir Bjarnason was missing for Aston Villa

Follow us on Google Discover

Birkir Bjarnason was nowhere to be seen as Aston Villa drew 0-0 with Championship rivals Hull City on Monday.

Birkir Bjarnason’s position in the Aston Villa midfield has come under scrutiny of late.

The 29-year-old was seemingly close to a January departure from Villa Park with a switch to Serie A on the cards, but not only did he stay, he established himself as a key player in Steve Bruce’s side when the window slammed shut.

But Bjarnason appears to now be a little out of favour again, starting just one Championship game since the 1-1 draw with Preston in mid-February. He did not even feature in the Midlands derby clash with Birmingham City.

And plenty of Villa fans took to Twitter after he celebrated his well-taken goal in the 4-1 thrashing of Wolves in very muted fashion, believing his body language betrayed a frustration at losing his place in the team.

But the Aston Villa supporters can sleep a little easier after the Birmingham Mail explained why Bjarnason was left out of Bruce’s 18-man squad for the 0-0 draw with Hull City on Easter Monday.

The Birmingham Mail claims that Bruce was keen to hand the former FC Basel midfielder a rest after his excursions with Iceland over the international break.

Bjarnason, who cost Villa £1.8 million in the winter of 2017, played the full 90 minutes of a 3-0 defeat to Mexico in San Fransisco and also featured for 77 in the 3-1 loss to Peru in New York just a few days later.