In an exclusive interview with This Is Futbol, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has warned Axel Tuanzebe that he will struggle to get game time at Villa Park if he moves there this summer.
The former Villa loanee is currently being linked with a move away from Manchester United, with Football Insider reporting that the Midlands club are keen on re-signing him.
Tuanzebe spent the 2018/19 season on loan at Villa Park, helping the Villans to win promotion before returning to his parent club.
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Since then, Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa have gone on to become the regular centre-back pairing under Dean Smith, a centre-back pairing Hendrie believes Tuanzebe would struggle to unsettle.
Speaking exclusively to TIF about Villa’s reported interest in the 23-year-old defender, the retired Premier League footballer said:
“It’s whether Axel wants to come in and actually fight for a place. The two at the moment [Mings and Konsa], basically they’re picked week in, week out if you look at it.
“I just think he isn’t going to overtake Mings and Konsa at this current time.”
If Tuanzebe does depart Old Trafford this summer, it will likely be because of the lack of game time he was getting there.
Furthermore, with Mings and Konsa mainstays in that Villa defence, perhaps a return would not be the wisest of moves.