Marc Albrighton made an appearance in the 71st minute in the 0-0 draw against Sunderland yesterday, after the winger’s loan spell at Wigan ended earlier in the week.
Having watched Albrighton play the last twenty minutes of the Sunderland game, I have to say I was quite impressed with what the winger produced in the time he had on the pitch. He put in a few brilliant crosses and on another day a striker would have been in the right position to find the back of the net.
He looked energetic and tried his best to make something happen for Villa. However, is this desperation because he knows this is his last chance to show Lambert that he has something to offer the first team? Does he genuinely have a part to play in the squad?
During Albrighton’s loan spell at Wigan, he made a total of four appearances, coming off the bench for two of them. He failed to score or create a single goal and picked up a booking.
Wigan chiefs wanted to extend Albrighton’s loan for another month but Lambert said that he was needed back at Villa Park due to a busy Christmas schedule. Albrighton also wanted to renew the loan and said that he was enjoying life at Wigan:
“I’d happily renew the contract and get a few more games here, definitely. As it stands I’ll be in training for a couple of days here and then go back. I’d definitely like to stay though.”
In my opinion, Albrighton has no end product. He has the ability to get by players and get into crossing positions but the delivery is often poor and this makes it very frustrating to watch Albrighton in action.
As Albrighton has been hit by plenty of injuries in the past year, he has not had much chance to impress the Villa faithful. Right now, he is at a vital stage in his career. If he wants to show Villa fans that he is good enough, he is going to have to do it pretty soon.
Albrighton’s performance yesterday gave me a glimmer of hope that we could get the old Marc Albrighton back – the one who scored the Premier League’s 20,000th goal. With a busy period coming up for Villa, Albrighton will get another chance to show what he is worth to this team. He will have to grasp that opportunity and impress or he could be waving goodbye to Villa Park.
Have to disagree with you on this on Matthew. I actually think that Albrighton has an end product. His crossing is by far superior to any player in our team with Lowton being a good nr. 2. I think he is the only real winger we have and I can see him being a good PL player if Lambert choses to play him.
Albrighton has never set the Premier League on fire really, so i agree with you,but i do not agree as well because he has had his injuries and he should be allowed his time to find his feet again.