Phillips: Barry in line for Aston Villa move in January as recall plan revealed
Kevin Phillips has claimed Aston Villa starlet Louie Barry could swap loan clubs in January to prevent his career from going “backwards”.
The former Claret and Blue striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, claimed the 18-year-old needs “guaranteed” game time to develop fully.
Birmingham Live reported earlier this month (October 6th) that Villa can recall Barry from his Ipswich Town loan move in January, with a potential League Two switch described as the club’s “plan B”.
The youngster has played just 68 league minutes for the Tractor Boys this term.
England under-18 international Barry joined Aston Villa from Spanish giants Barcelona in January last year.
Phillips insisted it was “important” the Villa hierarchy made the right decision for the sake of the promising youngster’s development.
“I always say about young players that it’s so important that wherever you go, you need to play,” he told Football Insider’s Ewan Kingsbury.
“It’s especially important at this stage of his career now, we know what he’s capable of – we saw that in the cup game against Liverpool.
“Now it’s just gone quiet for him. If he’s not getting game time, Villa need to bring him back and assess it.
“They need to send him somewhere with almost a guarantee that if he comes, he will play.
“Villa won’t want his career to start going backwards. There’s talent there, but he needs game time to properly develop and that’ll be on the minds of the club’s hierarchy.”
Barry scored 13 goals in 17 Premier League 2 games for Aston Villa’s U23 side last term.
The former West Brom talent scored on his senior debut against Liverpool in the FA Cup.
In other news, pundit reveals Aston Villa coaching staff’s “exciting” claim about 24-year-old star.