Stats show Steve Bruce should not sell Aston Villa striker Rudy Gestede

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Gestede may not be first choice at Villa Park right now but few teams have a more dangerous attacker in reserve

Aston Villa fans know better than most that the price for being unprepared can be very high indeed. After all, would one of the most historic clubs in English football have plumbed such depths if owner Randy Lerner had been attentive to the team’s rapid decline?

With the ambitious, affable Dr Tony Xia at the helm, Villa suddenly look in much safer hands and, in manager Steve Bruce, they have a man who knows the division like the back of his hands.

Therefore, it is something of a surprise that Rudy Gestede has played such a minimal role under the 55-year-old with speculation intensifying over a potential exit from Villa Park.

“I think we are a little bit unbalanced,” Bruce was quoted as saying by the Birmingham Mail recently. “We have got six or seven strikers but are only playing with one, so I think we are unbalanced in that regard.”

Despite Ross McCormack’s difficulties adapting to his manager’s preferred system, Gabby Agbonlahor’s decline and the constant unavailability of Libor Kozak, it is Gestede who appears to be inching out the exit door, linked with a £6 million move to Hull City or West Bromwich Albion according to The Sun.

While a potential move would allow Villa to recoup the hefty fee they played Blackburn for the services of a striker who has only scored eight league goals since netting on his debut against Bournemouth way back in August 2015, the stats suggest that the resurgent Midlanders could come to regret such a decision.

After all, despite starting just eight Championship games this season, three since Bruce took over in October, Gestede’s scores with almost one out of five shots, a better record than any of his fellow Villa strikers.

Furthermore, his goals-per-minute ratio is superior to marquee signing Jonathan Kodjia and vastly superior to both Ross McCormack and Jordan Ayew.

Moreover, you do not earn promotion from this most competitive of divisions without a viable Plan B. So Bruce should surely see the benefit of complementing the technically proficient forwards at his disposal with a 6ft 4ins beast, a player who can dominate opponents in the air and turn an aimless long ball into a potentially match-winning assist.

Half of Gestede’s goals this season have been thundered home via his head, meaning the 28-year-old offers a useful alternative against packed defensive lines.

With the January window about to swing open, Bruce has a decision to make. The difference between Villa sneaking into the play-offs and missing out entirely will surely rest on the form of his strikers.