Exclusive: Hutton claims Villa 29-yr-old he knows well is seeking a transfer
Alan Hutton has tipped his longstanding teammate and friend Henri Lansbury to leave Aston Villa this summer after enduring another difficult season in the West Midlands.
The former Claret and Blue, speaking exclusively to Football Insider correspondent Dylan Childs, admitted it has been tough for the 29-year-old to break into a “heavily loaded” midfield at Villa Park.
Lansbury has one year left on his deal at the club he joined from Nottingham Forest for £3million in the summer of 2017.
The centre-midfielder has featured predominantly as a substitute in his 14 appearances for Dean Smith this season but notably has five assists in four League Cup outings.
The Arsenal academy graduate was highly regarded as a youngster, representing England at under-16, 17, 19 and 21.
When asked by Football Insider what the future holds for the Englishman, Hutton said: “It has been difficult for him. We all know how good a player he is and how good he can be.
“At Villa, they are very heavily loaded in central midfield so it has been difficult for him at Villa.
“At his age now he is going to want to be playing week in week out. He may be thinking about a move away to get game time and start enjoying football.
“It has been tough for him. He has had to wait a long time to get games and when he has come in and out he has got injuries – that happens when you are not playing all of the time. You pick up niggles. He will be looking to move elsewhere.”
Frequent injury problems have hindered Lansbury’s ability to establish himself as a regular at Villa Park.
His future will likely be heavily dependant on the outcome of the current season with Villa currently on the brink of relegation with nine games to play.
In other Aston Villa news, Darren Bent has told Football Insider Spurs are front-runners to complete signing this summer.