Aston Villa midfielder Morgan Sanson has ‘struggled’ since his arrival at the club from France, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke.
The 27-year-old is yet to establish himself as a regular in the starting eleven. Sanson joined the club in the January transfer window of 2021 from Marseille. It was a deal worth a reported fee of £16 million.
Since the move, the midfielder has made only 16 appearances across all competitions after struggling with illness and numerous injury issues, which former Villa boss Dean Smith labelled as ‘frustrating’.
Prior to his move to the Midlands outfit, the box-to-box dynamo had shone for OM, racking up 47 goal contributions in 157 outings as well as competing in the Champions League.
However, he’s yet to score or assist while in his time at Villa. Sanson is finding it difficult to adapt to the physicality and intensity of the Premier League and his performances highlight just that.
With Jacob Ramsey and John McGinn both impressing it might a while before the Frenchman gets playing time. Since Steven Gerrard’s arrival as manager the man from France has only featured twice. In both matches the midfielder couldn’t complete 90 minutes.
Talking about Sanson, O’Rourke told this to GiveMeSport:
“I think he’s just struggled since his arrival. In France, he was a top player, but for whatever reason, it just hasn’t worked out for him so far at Villa. Just form and fitness maybe has been an issue.”
DOES SANSON HAVE A FUTURE AT VILLA?
With Ramsey and McGinn in top form it looks uncertain for Sanson to return to the side. However he still has some great underlying stats and if he stays fit and gets some momentum he could still add something to this Villa side.
The 5 foot 11 ace has ranked in the 99th percentile for pressures and interceptions, the 96th for progressive carries and 90th for blocks amongst players in his position over the last year, as per FBref.Starting Sanson against opposition where more emphasis is placed on defending could prove beneficial to Gerrard then, allowing him to showcase his true potential at Villa.
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