Why Aston Villa should sign Mason Holgate on loan in January
According to a report in Daily Mail, Everton defender Mason Holgate is likely to leave the club after being told by Marco Silva that he can go out on loan in the January window. The England U21 star did play four of the first five league games but hasn’t featured since September.
As per the report (h/t Mirror), the Toffees have received offers from fellow Premier League and Championship clubs regarding a short-term move for the player. The youngster is clearly behind Michael Keane, Yerry Mina and Kurt Zouma in the pecking order. It seems highly unlikely that he would take a big part in the league season.
Hence, the manager’s decision to let the Englishman leave on a short-term basis is probably the right call. Holgate signed a new five-year contract with the club last year and is seen as a future cog at Goodison Park. Thus, he won’t be allowed to leave on permanent. (Daily Mail)
Here’s why Aston Villa should take centre-stage and sign the 22-year-old next month:
Aston Villa need a centre-half
Aston Villa have recovered well after a fairly negative start to their season. The sacking of Steve Bruce and the arrival of Dean Smith has helped the proceedings in a massive way.
The Birmingham-based club is now pretty much in the race for promotion playoff places, which looked a distant dream in the first month of this campaign.
The performance has taken a huge hike under the new manager, which has resulted in the team getting better results. However, they are a bit short on centre-backs in their squad. Thanks to their own doing of loaning out Tommy Elphick to Hull City, Villa are now left with two first-team centre-backs – James Chester and Axel Tuanzebe, the latter being a loanee from Manchester United.
Mile Jedinak and Alan Hutton can play in that position if required, but they are not automatic choices. Hence, it is imperative from the club’s viewpoint that they sign a new centre-back, even if it is on a short-term loan deal.
Holgate would be a perfect addition as the youngster possesses qualities to help this team in the second part of this season. Dean Smith will have more options to choose from and that could aid him in building a better defence as his team seeks to grab that Premier League promotion slot come May.