Gabby Agbonlahor must prove himself to bag new Aston Villa deal
Gabriel Agbonlahor has been told he must deliver for Villa this season if he wants to earn a new deal with the club.
The 30-year-old striker is Villa’s longest-serving current player but has entered the final year of his contract with his career at a crossroads.
Agbonlahor looked almost certain to leave Villa Park 12 months ago before being brought back into the fold by boss Steve Bruce, scoring the winner in April’s derby victory over Blues.
And he has now been challenged to play a major role as the club target promotion from the Championship this season.
Agbonlahor captained Villa in Wednesday’s 4-0 friendly win at AFC Telford and club bosses hope the carrot of a possible new deal will provide the motivation for him to further kick on.
Discussing the striker’s situation, Villa chief executive Keith Wyness said: “Gabby is into his last year of a contract for the first time in a while. It’s in his own hands.
“He did work hard when Steve Bruce came in to get himself fit. He’s been unfortunate with a couple of injuries since then. But he’s got to work for it. For anything to happen it’s down to him. ”
Agbonlahor’s return to Villa’s first-team was one of the more unlikely stories from last season.
The club’s all-time top scorer in the Premier League, his reputation among supporters slumped drastically during the 2015/16 campaign which ended with the club’s relegation from the top flight.
He was then banished to train with the under-23s by Roberto Di Matteo before being offered a route back by Bruce.
Wyness added: “Roberto didn’t want Gabby involved at all. Steve took a different route and got some value out of Gabby.
“It depends on the manager. I tend to follow the manager’s instructions to a degree and try to support what he wants.
“It’s all in Gabby’s hands. I think we will see him giving it a really good go.”
