OPINION
Aston Villa boss Dean Smith was no doubt wanting to add reinforcements in the January transfer window in order to get his team’s promotion charge up and running.
Villa are now in with a shout of a play-off place in the Championship, and that task will now be made a lot easier after a number of signings.
One of those signings is defender Tyrone Mings, who has joined Villa on loan from Bournemouth for the rest of the season, and it is safe to say that his arrival has put one of his new teammates’ first team future into doubt.
Mings is known for being a versatile defender, as he is able to operate at centre-back as well as left-back, and his signing certainly does not make good news for Neil Taylor.
Left-back Taylor has made 20 appearances in all competitions for Villa this season, but with Mings now in the mix, he will be seriously concerned about how he will fit into Smith’s plans.
With James Chester, Kortney Hause, Tommy Elphick and Axel Tuanzebe all available to play in the centre of defence, it would not be surprising to see the manager play Mings at left-back.
Taylor has struggled to impress this season, and it is clear to see that he has not had the most successful of campaigns so far with his mixed displays.
Smith no doubt signed Mings in order to rectify that problem, so there is no doubt that Taylor will be relegated to the bench as a result.
To be honest, Taylor was becoming increasingly unreliable in his role at left-back, and there is only so many chances Smith would be willing to give him.
The 29-year-old must be quaking in his boots now that Mings has arrived, as the loanee has the ability to be a far superior option in the role due to his pace and strength on the ball – meaning that Smith will waste no time in swinging the axe.