OPINION
New Aston Villa boss Dean Smith will have been hard at work this week assessing and preparing his squad for his first game in charge against Swansea City on Saturday.
In addition to training hard and instilling his methods and values into his players, the former Brentford boss will have been working out where his weaknesses lie ahead of the January transfer window.
Those who know the club and the squad will immediately identify centre-back as a huge problem area for the club, with Smith having very few senior options at his disposal in that position.
One area where very few will surely identify as a weakness is up front, with Smith having Tammy Abraham, Jonathan Kodjia and Scott Hogan at his disposal, with Keinan Davis and Rushian Hepburn-Murphy waiting in the wings.
Those first three names it could be argued are among the best strike forces in the league on their day, and Smith would surely be wasting his time and money by swooping for another striker.
He has however been thrown a curve ball by former player Gabby Agbonlahor, who is now willing to play for the club for free.
As quoted by the Sun, Agbonlahor said: “Everyone knew the club had difficulties, so I asked my agent to speak with Steve Bruce and say I’d play for free. There were no strings, I didn’t want paying.
“It was a genuine offer to help the club I love.”
Considering Agbonlahor is still without a club and has not officially announced his retirement, it can be assumed that this unique offer is still on the table for new boss Smith.
Unfortunately for the 32-year-old, Smith would be totally bonkers to take him up on the offer.
Agbonlahor is well past it and has little to offer Villa anymore after leaving the club in the summer, and the club must move on from his years of loyal service.
His presence in the dressing room would likely be affable, but it would possibly unsettle some of the players already in the squad, and achieve nothing.
On the pitch, he would not be ready to make the required impact, and would likely be overlooked for minutes more often than not.
All in all this is a move which makes little sense for either party, and Smith must not take Agbonlahor up on it.