Aston Villa journalist Mat Kendrick has been sharing his thoughts on the possibility of the Midlands club making a potential transfer move for Manchester United defender and former Villa loan man Axel Tuanzebe during the upcoming summer transfer window.
This comes after Kendrick co-hosted a recent episode of the Birmingham Mail’s Claret & Blue Podcast where he spoke about a range of topics concerning Dean Smith’s side, including their recent 3-1 defeat against the Manchester club.
On the subject of Tuanzebe, who was part of the United squad that travelled to Villa Park over the weekend, Kendrick had this to say about whether or not he would like to see Villa try and sign the defender this summer. (11.34)
He said: “Tuanzebe – obviously we’ve got fond memories of him, he was part of the squad that got us back in the big time in the first place but again, he’s relatively inexperienced now in Premier League terms compared to Tyrone Mings.
“I wouldn’t have any hesitation about us going after play of that standard and as much as we’re looking to upgrade if United are looking to try and make that next step to challenge for the Premier League they’re going to be looking to upgrade as well.
“He’s worth having a look at, Dean Smith knows him well, Tyrone Mings knows him well having played alongside him, but whether you’d want him walking straight into that Villa defence? I’m not sure.”
TIF Thoughts on Mat Kendrick’s comments on a potential summer move for Tuanzebe…
During his two previous loan spells at Villa, the 23-year-old, who is currently valued at £7.2 million, made a total of 35 appearances in which he managed to provide an assist along the way (per Transfermarkt).
Given how Tuanzebe has experience of playing in defence for Villa and the fact that the Villans have failed to keep a clean sheet in the Premier League throughout their previous eight league fixtures, perhaps signing Tuanzebe on a permanent deal this summer should be something the club look to explore to help fix their leaky defence.
Should Villa try and sign Tuanzebe this summer?
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Also, with Tuanzebe having only made six appearances for United in the Premier League prior to their league clash against Leicester City, perhaps a permanent return to Villa this summer would give him the chance to get more minutes on the pitch next season.