Birkir Bjarnason was struggling for Championship minutes at Aston Villa before January and his agent had tried to secure a move to Serie A.
After David Edwards had been sent off for the visitors on the half-hour, the Icelandic international set Villa on their way to a much-needed 3-0 win with a stunning strike on the stroke of half-time to earn the praise of his manager, not to mention the fans.
Though this is not the first time Bjarnason, a former Basel ace who joined in January 2017, has been singled out for all the right reasons of late. He is still not a regular starter but, whenever the 29-year-old has played he’s made a difference.
Adapting to a new-look deep midfield position, Bjarnason’s energy and craft has been key to impressive victories against Barnsley and Sheffield United. That rasping long-range drive in the 4-1 thrashing of local rivals and league leaders Wolves will be remembered fondly for quite a while too.
So while Villa pulled off one of the best bargain deals of the January transfer window when they snapped up striker Lewis Grabban on loan from Bournemouth, the decision not to let Bjarnason leave now looks even more inspired.
Bjarnason barely played in the first half of this season and, according to Tuttomercatoweb, his agent was in Italy during January to seal a move away, possibly to SPAL. The Birmingham Mail, however, claimed that Aston Villa were not willing to sell for any less than the £2 million they paid for Bjarnason and, by the end of the month, he was still at the club.
This looks like a sliding doors moment, because since then Bjarnason has been a player reborn.
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