Aston Villa journalist Mark Jirobe has been talking about Villa defender Kortney Hause.
This comes after Jirobe recently made an appearance on Holtecast, a Villa-themed podcast to review Villa’s recent 1-1 draw against Newcastle United.
During the episode, Jirobe shared his thoughts on Hause and how he fared against Steve Bruce’s side.
He said: “I think it’s a curious case. I think that he does have ability. I don’t know if he’s a Premier League-standard player, I’m not going to go that far. But Villa have what they have, and they’ve got to use it.
“But it’s almost as if Kortney Hause is really, really relying on Douglas Luiz to be a security blanket of sorts for him. And you’re almost seeing Douglas starts to run toward Kortney the minute that the ball lands at his feet for an outlet, whether that’s for Luiz to get the ball and try to pump it up to the wings, or if he wants to turn on the ball and make a run.
“It seems like he doesn’t really have the technical ability. There’s some times where I wish he would just punt it into Row Z instead of just dilly-dallying on the ball or trying to look for an escape. No one is going to blame you for booting the ball out of play, even if it’s in your own third of the pitch; you’re a defender – that’s what you’re supposed to do, you’re supposed to clear danger when it happens.”
Hause’s performances in his 14 Premier League games for Villa so far this year have earned him a season rating of 6.9/10, making him Villa’s fourth-highest rated player for this campaign (per WhoScored).
Is Kortney Hause good enough for Villa?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts…
Despite Jirobe’s doubts over Hause’s quality as a Premier League player, the defender was Villa’s best performer out of everyone that started the match at St. James’ Park, earning himself a match rating of 7.2/10 (per WhoScored).
If Hause, who is valued at £5.85 million (Transfermarkt), can keep this good form up for Villa’s remaining fixtures, he could shake off any doubts people like Jirobe have about him while helping Villa avoid relegation this year.