The Sheffield Wednesday midfielder left Aston Villa in 2013 and they’ve struggled in central midfield ever since.
Although Barry Bannan was given almost 100 games to prove his worth to Aston Villa, you still get the feeling that they were a little hasty carting him off to Crystal Palace in 2013. Especially as, in the four years since, their central midfield options have changed almost by the season as underperforming flops are continually ‘upgraded’ by players of supposedly higher quality.
And, with Sheffield Wednesday preparing to travel from the Steel to the Second City on Saturday, could Bannan show Villa what they’ve been missing?
The Scotland midfielder has enjoyed arguably the most consistent season of his career to date with only Albert Adomah (8) in Villa colours contributing more assists than Bannan (7) in 2016/17.
Furthermore, his pass completion rate of 83 per cent outshines any of the midfielders currently at Steve Bruce’s disposal with the likes of Conor Hourihane and Henri Lansbury, despite the odd moment of class, yet to fully demonstrate their worth since arriving in January.
Yet, perhaps the club wouldn’t have been forced to spend big in January if they’d had the foresight to keep hold of a player who is gearing up to take part in the play-offs for the second season in succession. His former club, meanwhile are languishing in mid-table.
“I think a lot of the fans who boo me on Saturday won’t realise that I actually support Aston Villa,” Bannan told the Yorkshire Post.
“That club has brought me to where I am and I owe them a lot. But, obviously on Saturday, I will be trying my best for Sheffield Wednesday.”
Former Villa boss Gerard Houllier may have jumped the gun comparing the gifted Scot to Xavi or Andres Iniesta, as reported by the Birmingham Mail, but, like the Barcelona legends, perhaps the club could have benefitted from Bannan’s longevity.
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