Gabby Agbonlahor

Thu 21 July 2022 7:30, UK

Gabby Agbonlahor has claimed there is no way back for Carney Chukwuemeka at Aston Villa.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Aston Villa’s record Premier League goalscorer claimed Chukwuemeka being left off the pre-season tour to Australia was a “big” sign his time at the club was up.

It comes amid a stand-off over a potential new contract for the 18-year-old with his current deals set to expire in less than 12 months.

Sources told Football Insider earlier this week (18 July) that he is demanding an extraordinary salary of around £100,000-a-week.

“Aston Villa will not be bullied into paying the wages to a young player that he doesn’t deserve yet,” Agbonlahor told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.

“If I was Steven Gerrard and Aston Villa I’d be offering him a contract of £15,000-a-week with a high appearance fee. If you start the game or come on for 20 minutes you get a certain amount in a bonus and if you play 38 games you get a new contract.

“These are all things that I had in my contract, there were incentives.

“You can’t demand the amount of money that the starting players are on.

“Aston Villa have to be strong and if it comes to a stage where Aston Villa where they are being strict and Chukwuemeka‘s agent is saying ‘I can get him this somewhere else’, then you have to let him go.

“Will they want to let him go? No, they won’t but they will move on and other players will come through the youth system with extreme talent.

“You have to credit Aston Villa and if Chukwuemeka wants to go somewhere else and they will pay him what his agent demands then good luck to him.

“Leaving him off the tour is an option they didn’t want to do but they probably realise they are getting nowhere with the negotiation and that sign shows to me there is no way back.

“To leave him at home is a big thing.”

In other news, a finance guru has revealed Aston Villa have unearthed the “golden ticket” amid a behind-the-scenes NSWE reveal.