The Aston Villa boss could certainly do with two of the club’s brightest academy graduates in recent seasons in his current side.
It is fair to say Aston Villa’s approach to the transfer market has left a lot to be desired in recent seasons. Flogging their key man while simultaneously bringing in a raft of cheap, overseas imports, a la Antonio Luna and Jose Angel Crespo, and overrated homegrown youngsters, think Joe Bennett and Jordan Bowery, the fact that the Midlands giants have declined by the season is no coincidence.
And, as Steve Bruce has told the Birmingham Mail, Villa are continuing to pay for cutting ties with two of their most impressive academy graduates in recent seasons, without making a penny.
Barry Bannan played almost 100 times for the Villa first-team but, since his surprise departure to Crystal Palace in 2013, the club have lacked any kind of consistency in midfield. These days, he is central to Sheffield Wednesday’s promotion hopes having produced seven assists this season.
And why Villa let Marc Albrighton leave on a free is anyone’s guess. Breaking through in 2010 and immediately standing out thanks to his Beckham-esque deliveries from out wide, the winger left for Leicester in 2014 when his contract expires. Two years on, he had a Premier League winner’s medal around his neck.
Although Bruce has suggested that Villa would not have dropped the ball if he was at the helm.
“How on earth we’ve let Barry Bannan leave this club on a free transfer tells you which way the club’s been over the last few years,” Bruce told the Birmingham Mail of the midfielder who was on the losing side against his former club on Saturday.
“That’s what we’re still trying to put right. Everywhere I look, we’ve let good players leave the club. Barry Bannan in particular, there’s another one down the road who has just won the Premier League [Albrighton].
“All of that is the spiral of instability, if that’s the right word. We’ve got to amend all that and that takes time.”
Not flogging their brightest prized assets would be a good place to start.
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