Do Aston Villa really need to replace Gollini?

Aston Villa have recently been linked with various moves for a new goalkeeper.

This, my friends, is a bad decision waiting to happen.

You can’t have enough players, especially when you’re a team like Aston Villa, who have struggled with various squad-depth related issues for eons now, but Villa’s search for a new goalkeeper might be disastrous.

Take for example Villa’s last few years under the mishap-prone Brad Guzan, Villa didn’t actually ever endeavour to look for a goalkeeper despite Guzan’s clear decline as a player, this was a terrible decision.

Things are much different now under Pierluigi Gollini.

Now, Gollini hasn’t done much wrong since the errors that plagued the start of his season. He’s let a few dodgy goals in, he’s made a few errors - but he’s stopped costing Villa points and he’s started saving them. He’s started doing his job.

On paper, Brad Guzan would be a better option than the Italian. Guzan’s a Premier League player, he’s a United States player. He’s a seasoned veteran. At first glance he has all the attributes needed in a goalkeeper. Brad Guzan, however, started to cost Villa their place in the Premier League. He became increasingly error-prone and outright failed to organise his defence.

Gollini, on the other hand, has seemed to iron his errors out of his game and has looked increasingly confident with each match played. He’s 21 and not yet a international. He’s starting his career and already offers more to Aston Villa than Guzan could.

So why are Aston Villa seemingly getting ready to chuck £6 million at Sheffield Wednesday’s Kieran Westwood? The answer could be in relation to Jed Steer’s season ending injury, but £6 million for a back-up goalkeeper is just absurd and that money could, and should, be saved.

Juventus are said to be eyeing up Gollini as the potential heir to Buffon’s Turin throne, but they have the capability to purchase any goalkeeper they set their eyes on, including Milan’s Gianluigi Donnarumma. Maybe a new goalkeeper would prepare Villa for that scenario?

At any rate, Gollini does not need replacing and Villa don’t really need a back-up right now. Mark Bunn has proven serviceable and Villa have depth in the reserves through Matija Sarkic and Viktor Johansson. £6 million could go a long way for this Aston Villa team who might need a new defender or midfielder in January. Right now? Gollini’s got the GK spot on lock and that’s good for you, him, me and Villa.