The main area of the team which seems to be currently lacking is the midfield. Former Crewe captain Ashley Westwood has become a bargain buy at 2m in the middle of the park, but doesn’t seem to have anyone around him to create chances for the front two or sit back and help protect the back four. Something Villa has missed since former captain Stiliyan Petrov was diagnosed with leukaemia is someone who can control the game from the middle of the park and sit in front of a back four and protect it, similar to a Xavi Alonso or Muhammad Diame.
If Paul Lambert expects to survive relegation to the Championship, his top priority will to be buy a physically commanding defensive midfielder in January, alongside a new attacking midfielder and Westwood for Villa’s midfield three come 1st February. A new attacking midfielder is needed; who has can do something Stephen Ireland hasn’t done at B6 since his move from Manchester City in 2010; the ability to open up an opposition defence to supply strikers Benteke, Agbonlahor, Weimann and Bent.
Continuing with the problematic midfield of present is the calling for the reintroduction of wingers (something which currently doesn’t suit Lambert’s 3-5-2 and 5-3-2 formations). Villa fans haven’t seen clinical wingers since the days of Ashley Young and Stuart Downing that resulted in goals left, right and centre. Although with the current formation Paul Lambert has implemented the midfield three doesn’t play with width, so it’s unlikely Villa fans will see wingers such as Tom Ince, Matty Phillips or Yohan Belasis in claret and blue during the January transfer window.
Additional areas which Villa need to strength is the back four, however with returns of captain Ron Vlaar and Richard Dunne still to come it’s unlikely to see the introduction of a new centre back (such as Joleon Lescott) coming through the gates at Bodymoor Heath anytime soon. Similar is the left back position, Paul Lambert is highly unlikely to give up on new signing Joe Bennett (so far plagued with injuries in his Villa career) similar also to Edna Stevens; Eric Lichaj still hasn’t settling into the left wing back role, even though he isn’t a natural left back.
Come the January transfer window which opens on the 1st January, owner Randy Lerner will need to open his cheque book after selling NFL team Cleveland Browns for around 1 billion pounds to finally terminate the threat of a club with the history and prestige as Aston Villa with constant relegation chatter to the Championship. A figure around 10-15m is needed, which doesn’t even include the more than likely departure of Darren Bent.
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