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Aston Villa? Right now, they are a team of midfielders With the recent signing of Josh Onomah, they have compiled a who’s-who of midfield talent.
This is seriously promising for Villa, but it’s also expensive. Effectively, Villa could lose six players to injury and (depending on who they are) it might not even dent the team, however this privilege is super costly and Villa’s midfield is probably why they are pushing the limits of financial fair play.
If Steve Bruce wants to rotate this season, he’s got options - certainly. Here’s a chart of Villa’s first team starters of last-season alongside the talent in the side. I’ve included AMC’s in the number 10 role as well.
Aston Villa Midfield Depth Chart
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Hourihane | Bjarnason | Lyden |
| Lansbury | Bacuna | Gardner |
| Jedinak | Whelan | Doyle-Hayes |
| Grealish | Onomah | O'Hare |
What does this mean? Well, Villa’s starters last season in Grealish, Jedinak, Lansbury and Hourihane are no slouches at all, their ‘backups’ in Whelan, Onomah, Bjarnason and Bacuna could still work well in the upper half of the Championship. Villa’s third string is also talented, with big talent coming from Lyden and O’Hare as well as Doyle-Hayes; while Gary Gardner was a starter for Villa throughout most of the past season.
Villa’s depth in the middle is huge. We’d expect to see outbound movement soon, but right now, Villa can effectively field three midfields.