Emile Heskey has given his backing to Aston Villa’s pursuit of Chelsea duo Ross Barkley and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, telling HITC that the England internationals would be ‘very, very good additions’.
Barkley sealed his move to Villa earlier today on a season long loan, with talks ongoing for Loftus-Cheek, The Telegraph reported.
While Villa fans were treated to another entertaining edition of the ‘Jack Grealish Show’ during Monday’s 3-0 thrashing of Fulham, Dean Smith knows that he cannot afford to remain so heavily reliant upon the floppy-haired, fleet-footed number ten.
Grealish topped the charts for goals (eight), assists (six), shots per game (2), key passes (2.5) and dribbles per game (4) during the 2019/20 season.
And while it was the Birmingham-born skipper who secured Villa’s survival with that rocket-shot on the final day against West Ham, the Midland giants have made it their mission to ease the crushing weight of expectation on Grealish’s sloping shoulders.
And that is where a pair of Chelsea benchwarmers come in.
And Heskey, a former Villa striker, backs Villa’s move for Barkley and possible Loftus-Cheek deal.
“(Barkley and Loftus-Cheek) any of them would be great additions. Very, very good additions. They are England internationals and that would add to the Villa squad,” says Heskey, who played almost 100 league games for the club between 2009 and 2012.
“Last year, when you look at Villa’s tactics, it was basically give it to Jack and see what he can do. But when you’ve got other options it drags the (opposition) team all over the place. (Now, other teams) can just sit two people on Jack and know you’ve nullified half of Villa’s attack.
“But if you’ve got other people to chip in, that’s when you’re going to get Jack into the game even more. That’s when he’s going to get even more dangerous.”
Aston Villa have already spent over £70 million during another summer of heavy spending, paying big sums for Emiliano Martinez, Matty Cash and Bertrand Traore.
But it is £28 million record signing Ollie Watkins who has caught Heskey’s eye so far.
“Villa have bought astutely with Watkins, who has actually done very well. I’m impressed with him because, when you go into the Premier League as a young lad, you shouldn’t be fearing anyone,” the former England international adds.
“You should be going out there and showcasing what you’re capable of doing and getting the best out of yourself. And that’s what he’s done. He’s done very, very well.”
Grealish remains the wizard of Villa Park but, with Watkins and Traore in and Barkley and Loftus-Cheek potentially set to follow, he will no longer be the only source of magic.
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