Aston Villa have had a pretty shaky start to the Championship season and it seems like the international break couldn’t have come at a better time. If recent reports from the Sun are to be believed, the Villans are set to swoop for former Leicester City defender Robert Huth.
Huth’s contract with Leicester came to an in July and he has been without a club since. The 34-year-old has been training, though, and it seems Villa could be his next destination.
Villa missed out on securing veteran defender John Terry’s signature earlier in the summer and Huth could be the ideal player to replace his former Chelsea teammate at Villa Park.
Why Huth would be a shrewd addition to Aston Villa
A Premier League winner with Leicester a few years ago, Huth might be past his peak but can still do a decent enough job at the back. The German has the experience of playing in the top flight and if he is provided with that bit of protection from the midfielders, he could add a lot more solidity at the back.
Huth had quite a few injury issues last season which mean he couldn’t play a part in the League action for Leicester City. From that perspective, he might be a risk considering there are a lot more games to be played in the Championship. However, Steve Bruce will have to carefully rotate the German.
In the 2016-17 season, Huth made 33 appearances in the Premier League and eight appearances in the Champions League as Leicester impressed in Europe. Though they flattered to deceive in the league, Huth still had a fairly good campaign.
Huth averaged 6.7 clearances and 1.3 interceptions in the league. Without N’Golo Kante’s presence, the teams struggled to be as impressive as the title-winning campaign.
Huth’s style will depend on who really plays in midfield. Because he’s 34, his game isn’t about keeping up with attackers and putting in the tackle. However, he tends to be in the right place which is why his clearances are incredibly high when compared to his tackles (0.8 tackles a game in the 2016-17 season).
For a free transfer, he’d be a smashing addition and he’d add a lot more experience to the defence that currently has Mile Jedinak playing as a makeshift centre-half.
Stats via Whoscored
