Scott Hogan suggests not enjoying Aston Villa spell one bit

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Scott Hogan endured a difficult time at Aston Villa, and was loaned out by Dean Smith after their promotion to the Premier League.

Scott Hogan has suggested that he did not enjoy one bit of his time at Aston Villa, and explained that he felt that he never quite fit in at the club, in comments reported by Stoke-on-Trent Live.

Hogan earned a move to Villa Park during the 2017 January transfer window after an outstanding start to the season where he scored 14 goals in 25 Championship games for Brentford. Stoke-on-Trent Live reports that the Bees received £9 million for the striker.

Unfortunately, it never quite clicked for the 27-year-old, who scored one league goal in the months following his move, and found the back of the net just six times during his first full campaign at Villa Park.

With Dean Smith’s men getting promoted last season, it appears that Hogan has little chance of forcing his way back into the picture with his parent club – despite scoring a couple of goals to help Sheffield United secure promotion while on loan last term – and he joined Stoke for the season during the summer.

He has already opened his account for the Potters, scoring in the 2-2 draw with Derby County at the weekend. And while reflecting on his time at Villa, Hogan suggested it was a real learning curve but seemed to admit that he cannot look back at the spell with any fondness.

“It’s taught me a lot. It was a difficult time in my career and I didn’t enjoy one bit of it,” he said, as reported by Stoke-on-Trent Live.

“My confidence got knocked. I had a couple of injuries. It wasn’t going well. I just didn’t fit in.

“I tried over the two years I was there. I tried everything. Sometimes you’ve got to hold your hands up and I needed a fresh start. I’m guilty for a lot of it and I have to use it as a learning curve to kick on again and get back to where I was.”

Despite Smith not having an extensive list of striker options this season, it does appear that loaning Hogan out is the best move for all parties. He can play regularly, Stoke get a striker who has done well in the Championship, and Villa can put a fringe player in the shop window which may help ensure that they recoup a more significant amount of the £9 million that they spent.