Claret Villans
Fansided

Aston Villa: The lowdown on Forest’s Henri Lansbury

By Khaled Abdallah

Oct 16, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; FC Dallas fan cheers before the match against the Seattle Sounders at Toyota Stadium. FC Dallas won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 16, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; FC Dallas fan cheers before the match against the Seattle Sounders at Toyota Stadium. FC Dallas won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Nottingham Forest captain Henri Lansbury was left out of Forest’s 2-0 defeat to Wigan Athletic in FA Cup 3rd-round action. Personal terms between Lansbury and Aston Villa have reportedly been agreed to.

Almost five days after Aston Villa’s first January signing, a second approaches.

Villa and fellow Championship side Nottingham Forest agreed to £3.5 million pound move for the services of captain Henri Lansbury. Lansbury, 26, will depart Forest with 150 appearances and 33 goals to his name over four and a half seasons.

It was reported earlier in the week Lansbury’s representatives and Villa agreed to personal terms even before the two clubs settled on a fee. Aston Villa are acquiring Lansbury’s services on a discount because his contract with Forest runs out in the summer.

Lansbury is an ex-Arsenal player who came up through their academy before making eight first team appearances. In search of regular first team football, he went on loan to several sides before settling in Nottinghamshire.

During Lansbury’s Arsenal days, the central midfielder frequently represented England youth national teams, including: U16, U17, U19, and U21 sides.

What will Henri Lansbury bring to Villa Park? A lot of nastiness on the pitch – evident by his eight league bookings. More importantly, Lansbury will bring something to Villa the club has not had in a very, very long time. Goals from the midfield position.

Lansbury’s six league goals would rank second in the squad, behind striker Jonathan Kodjia’s nine strikes. Additional contributions include a 74.8% pass success rate with a mean WhoScored rating of 7.23(!).

Steve Bruce could elect to use Lansbury in his traditional three-man midfield just ahead of Mile Jedinak. Imagine how fearsome a triumvirate of: Jedinak, Lansbury, and Tshibola would be to opposing sides. Three central midfielders, all over six feet tall – 2/3 of whom are bearded – and not afraid to concede a yellow card.

Next: Rushian Hepburn-Murphy is betting on himself

Overall, this looks to be a solid pick-up for Aston Villa. Not only does Lansbury fill a position of need, but he comes on the cheap and in the peak age of his career.

Hopefully, Lansbury is announced Monday; just enough time to be available for next weekend’s league match against Wolverhampton.

Center back depth, right back, and an extra attacker are still needed. Tony Xia is prepared for another busy transfer window, his second as the principal owner of Aston Villa.

Home/Transfer Rumors