Championship crisis club Aston Villa look set to keep hold of Henri Lansbury this summer while so many of his teammates are heading for the exit.
It seems that every gifted player in Aston Villa’s squad has been linked with a move away this summer, with the Midland giants needing to raise £40 million in order to avoid Financial Fair Play sanctions.
Jack Grealish is heading for the exit while speculation over the futures of James Chester, Jonathan Kodjia and Mile Jedinak have also intensified in recent days.
Henri Lansbury, however, has been somewhat absent from the gossip columns of late. But it appears that there is a good reason why.
According to the Mirror (19 July, page 58), the former Nottingham Forest captain has been given the opportunity to salvage his Aston Villa career, purely because Steve Bruce’s side cannot find a buyer for a player who is earning a massive £40,000 a week.
It is understood that no club wants to take Lansbury off Villa’s hands, which means they may be forced to keep him ahead of next season.
This represents quite the fall from grace for Lansbury, who was a man in demand before he swapped Forest for Villa in January 2017 for a fee of £2.7 million.
The former Arsenal youngster failed to score a goal or produce an assist in the second half of 2017/18 despite tallying six and three for Forest in the first few months of the campaign. And he made just ten Championship appearances last season, six of those coming from the start.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
