5 players Aston Villa should sell this summer

In the end, it was just a single point that kept Aston Villa from going back to the Championship once again. Despite spending over $100 million last summer, Dean Smith and his men struggled in the Premier League all season.

Now with a new season approaching, the Villans must look to upgrade their squad- which means buying some new talent and letting go of some of their existing players.

Here is a list of five players that Aston Villa should look to sell in this transfer window.

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5 players Aston Villa should look to sell this summer

#1 Lovre Kalinic

Lovre Kalinic was Dean Smith's first signing as Aston Villa manager

Lovre Kalinic was Dean Smith's first signing when he took over as the manager of Aston Villa in January 2019. In his debut season, the Croatian made seven appearances in the Championship before losing out his place to Jed Steer.

It has been a similar story for the World Cup runner-up in the recently-concluded campaign. While on loan at Toulouse, Kalinic played under five matches before injury ruled him for the season.

With Aston Villa already docked up in the goalkeeping department, Kalinic is unlikely to get another chance in the first team. The Villans should, therefore, look to sell the surplus shot-stopper to free up some wages in the squad.

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#2 Neil Taylor

Neil Taylor has fallen down the pecking order at Villa Park

Neil Taylor has been a very good servant for Aston Villa since arriving at the club in 2017. The Wales international played a crucial role during the Villan's successful championship campaign last season.

However, the story has been very different this season. The arrival of Matt Targett has restricted the former Swansea man to just 14 matches.

With just under a year remaining in his contract, Aston Villa should look to sell the defender and re-invest somewhere else.

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#3 Jota

Jota looked out of place in the Premier League all season

Jota arrived at Villa Park this season as only the second player in this millennium to directly move from Birmingham to Aston Villa.

It should have been the perfect signing for Dean Smith. The two had previously worked in Brentford, and the move sounded like a great deal for the Villains on paper. However, as destiny may have it, Aston Villa barely escaped relegation as Jota failed to adjust to the league.

The winger looked out of place in the Premier League all season. Despite high praise from his manager, Jota made just 12 appearances and scored one goal across all competitions.

With just under a year left in his contract and the player at his peak years, Aston Villa should look to cash in on the out-of-favour winger.

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#4 Orjan Nyland

Orjan Nyland's inconsistency was one of the reasons why Aston Villa bought Pepe Reina

Since his arrival in 2018, Orjan Nyland has made 30 appearances, with just seven of them coming in the Premier League. Even in the seven matches, the Norweigian has looked shaky in between the sticks.

Doubts about Nyland was one of the reasons for Aston Villa to bring in Pepe Reina during the January transfer window.

With just under a year remaining in his contract and the Villans stacked up in the goalkeeper department, it is time to let go of the Norweigian.

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#5 Henri Lansbury

Henri Lansbury doesn't look like he is in Dean Smith's plans at Aston Villa

Once the cream of the crop in the Arsenal academy, Henri Lansbury is now surplus to requirements at Villa Park. The midfielder joined Aston Villa in 2017 and was a crucial part of the side in his first season.

However, from the succeeding season onwards, Lansbury found himself more on the bench rather than on the field. The 29-year old has almost been a permanent fixture on the bench.

Since the arrival of Dean Smith, the midfielder has made just 13 league appearance - 8 of them from the bench.

With Lansbury not in the manager's plan, Aston Villa should look to offload the out-of-favour midfielder and invest elsewhere.

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