OPINION
Many Aston Villa fans were no doubt up in arms after finding out that Ahmed Elmohamady was starting against West Brom on Saturday.
He is clearly not a fan favourite and that is not a surprise given that the number of poor performances he has churned out has outweighed the good.
One person who will regret starting the 31-year-old in this 2-0 loss, as he practically offered no impact and was virtually anonymous when he was on the pitch.
Yes, he did press high up the field, but this was to no avail, as he showed no purpose whatsoever when Villa attempted to attack after the break – and he then missed a couple of chances after that.
Smith’s decision to start him as no doubt backfired on him after he proved to be ineffective, so he must swing the axe on him for their upcoming clash against Stoke City.
This result would have made a huge dent in Villa’s promotion prospects, but that is not surprising given that the manager decided to start such an abysmal player.
He has the potential to cause a lot of problems in the midfield – but the fact he was unable to capitalise on a few stray passes from the Baggies basically summed up what an unsuccessful afternoon it was for the Egypt international.
If Smith continues to play him, then he is just denting Villa’s prospects of climbing up the table and earning a play-off place – so it is a no-brainer really.
He has somehow made 26 appearances in all competitions this season, which is surprising given his form at the moment, so Smith must take action as soon as possible.
Many fans would definitely be elated if the chopping block beckoned for the player, and they too are no doubt growing tired of his inconsistency.
Over to you, Smith.