Stewart Downing has been linked with a surprise return to Aston Villa after being told he can leave Middlesbrough on a free transfer.
Middlesbrough’s Stewart Downing
Stewart Downing’s days as a £20 million-rated England regular may be well behind him, he may have started just 24 Premier League games last season, but it’s no surprise that there has been an outpouring of interest after it was announced that Middlesbrough would let him leave on a free.
The Sun claim that newly promoted Brighton and Hove Albion are leading the chase for the 32-year-old. But it is links with former club Aston Villa, per the Express and Star, that elicit the most intrigue.
Downing arguably enjoyed the most impressive spell of his career at Villa Park between 2009 and 2011, earning that ill-fated big-money move to a Liverpool side seemingly locked in permanent transition.
And though he’s a few years older and a yard or two of pace has disappeared, Downing still possesses that wand of a left foot and the expert dead-eyed delivery to bring the best out of Jonathan Kodjia, Scott Hogan and co in the Championship.
Nonetheless, although Villa’s spending has been limited by Financial Fair Play restrictions, it appears this will not push them in the direction of their suddenly available former flame.
Stewart Downing at Aston Villa
Charismatic owner Tony Xia, as he tends to do, has taken to Twitter to discuss the prospect of Villa re-signing any of their former players this summer.
Now, as far as we can tell, this rules out any chance of Downing donning the famous claret and blue any time toon. And this is a decision that could go down well with the fanbase.
After all, Downing is not the most popular figure at Villa Park after leaving under a cloud six years ago.
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