Ross Barkley

[Mister E]

I was pretty pissed off with him yesterday and would be happy for him never to pull on a Villa shirt again.
As I said on the match thread, his indecision when set up by Watkins directly led to the winning goal: if Barkley had taken the shot as soon as he'd received the ball, he would either have scored or the ball would have gone out for a goalkick or corner. Instead he dallied, the ball was taken from him and the ensuing move produced the goal.
I want dynamism, commitment and quick-thinking: he brings none.

[Toronto Villa]

Whatever he has when he joined us he has completely lost. It’s a shame because what he showed was everything we needed in that position. Whether it was the injury or it’s something else entirely he’s not a player we need to invest in for next season.

[eamonn]

He dwells on the ball too much and as a substitute that is magnified. When he comes on, he's trying to get used to the pace of the game but he also wants to take his time.

Ramsey seemed to get in his way for that decision in whether to take the shot on or pass but he needed to be more decisive and more importantly, he needed to chase back to try and win the ball again, instead of giving it up as soon as possession was lost. It's that questionable attitude that puts me off him more than anything.

[paul_e]

I was pretty pissed off with him yesterday and would be happy for him never to pull on a Villa shirt again.
As I said on the match thread, his indecision when set up by Watkins directly led to the winning goal: if Barkley had taken the shot as soon as he'd received the ball, he would either have scored or the ball would have gone out for a goalkick or corner. Instead he dallied, the ball was taken from him and the ensuing move produced the goal.
I want dynamism, commitment and quick-thinking: he brings none.

Yep, that's just the latest example but he's so ponderous all the time. If he was our player I'd be happy to see him getting time to try to find some form/confidence but we're not going to keep him so I don't see the point.

He dwells on the ball too much and as a substitute that is magnified. When he comes on, he's trying to get used to the pace of the game but he also wants to take his time.

Ramsey seemed to get in his way for that decision in whether to take the shot on or pass but he needed to be more decisive and more importantly, he needed to chase back to try and win the ball again, instead of giving it up as soon as possession was lost. It's that questionable attitude that puts me off him more than anything.

I agree Ramsey ended up in the way but he'd been calling for a pass for 3-4 seconds before that and had plenty of space Barkley freezing up meant all the space for a shot or a pass was lost. If it had bene any of 5-6 other players in the squad I'd have backed them to make it 2-1 to us in the same situation.

[KevinGage]

As it stands, I wouldn't do the deal.

But I'm reminded of Tom Cleverly, who was largely ineffective and on the periphery of things during his time with us.  But had a purple patch towards the end of the season and most would have been happy enough to see him remain.

If Barkley has a strong finish to the end of the season and tips the balance in a few games for us, it'll be easy enough to argue that his mid season drop off was due to the injury. Either way, I don't think he'll be here next year.

[Woody17]

He’s certainly not worth the £20-£30 million investment that Chelsea will want for him.
We could spend that kind of money much wiser elsewhere.

[ChicagoLion]

Be bat shit crazy to sign Barkley and I don’t think our owners are that daft.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Be bat shit crazy to sign Barkley and I don’t think our owners are that daft.

Sign him? It would be bat shit crazy to give him another minute in a Villa shirt.

[RamboandBruno]

He hasn’t really had a kick in the last 3 or 4 games, yesterday must be the longest he’s had in a while. I would guess without having a clue, that Smith thought he might be more fired up as it was Liverpool at Anfield. It looks like a lack of confidence combined with a can’t be arsed attitude, has killed his season. It’s a shame as I think he did give us something we never had last season in terms of our attacking from midfield.
W’eve got 8 games left, of which he can’t play against Chelsea presumably. Yesterday feels a bit like the last chance saloon for him, I don’t think he’ll get many minutes in his 7 games left with us.
We do need to look at filling that role next season, Deli Alli anyone??

[paul_e]

As it stands, I wouldn't do the deal.

But I'm reminded of Tom Cleverly, who was largely ineffective and on the periphery of things during his time with us.  But had a purple patch towards the end of the season and most would have been happy enough to see him remain.

If Barkley has a strong finish to the end of the season and tips the balance in a few games for us, it'll be easy enough to argue that his mid season drop off was due to the injury. Either way, I don't think he'll be here next year.

I think Cleverly is a perfect example of why you shouldn't sign a loanee on the back of a handful of decent performances, he spent the next 5 years struggling for gametime at Everton and then Watford.

I'll be very upset if Barkley stays mostly because I think most of his problems are in his head and he doesn't seem all that bothered about fixing them.

[eamonn]

He’s certainly not worth the £20-£30 million investment that Chelsea will want for him.
We could spend that kind of money much wiser elsewhere.

We've already given them £11m for the loan fee as well as paying his and Drinkwater's wages over the past year. They can send us a bunch of flowers and Tammy Abraham at a cut-price deal to make-up for it.

[DrGonzo]

Are we allowed to wish out loud we had signed Lingaard in the window yet?

[TelfordVilla]

Not sure why he is still included in the first team squad. We are not signing him for next season. He is contributing nothing for this season and he is blocking the progress of our own younger players.

[exigo]

When he first arrived, he was playing to get into the England Euro squad. Now he knows that's not happening he barely looks like he wants to play at all.
I'd much rather have someone in the squad who's desperate to impress. Chukwuemeka would bring more right now for that alone.

[aj2k77]

He’s certainly not worth the £20-£30 million investment that Chelsea will want for him.
We could spend that kind of money much wiser elsewhere.

We've already given them £11m for the loan fee as well as paying his and Drinkwater's wages over the past year. They can send us a bunch of flowers and Tammy Abraham at a cut-price deal to make-up for it.

You seriously think we paid someone £11m to borrow their reserve for one season?