Aston Villa are reportedly considering the prospect of selling defensive mainstay Ezri Konsa in the summer as Steven Gerrard continues his squad overhaul.
According to a report from Football Insider, Aston Villa are planning to listen to offers for defender Ezri Konsa as Steven Gerrard looks to build a squad in his own image for next season.
Konsa came through the youth ranks at Charlton Athletic and joined Brentford in 2018, where he made quite the splash, leading to several Premier League clubs wanting to sign him. However, Aston Villa beat the rest of the suitors to the punch to capture him in the summer of 2019.
Since arriving at Villa Park, the 24-year-old has been a mainstay at the back alongside Tyrone Mings and has racked up 91 appearances for the Midlands outfit. Former manager Dean Smith held Konsa in high regard, and the club handed him a new long-term contract last year, tying him down until the summer of 2026.
However, as per the report, new manager Steven Gerrard is not entirely convinced by the Englishman. It is stated that the Liverpool legend has doubts over Konsa’s consistency and reliability, despite having used him regularly since replacing Smith at the helm.
Aston Villa were in the market for a new defender in January and tried to sign Joe Gomez from Liverpool, but their efforts proved futile. In the end, they did bring in Calum Chambers as a replacement for Axel Tuanzebe, whose loan stint was terminated prematurely.
But Gerrard wants to sign another top defender in the summer transfer window to strengthen the backline that has shipped 37 goals from 24 matches this term. Villa continue to hold an interest in Gomez, but will face competition from Newcastle United, while there is no guarantee that Liverpool will change their stance on the centre-half.
Nevertheless, there will be a budget set aside to bring in a new centre-back to Villa Park. Gerrard and the club seem open to the idea of cashing in on Konsa should any appealing offers come along in the summer. The 24-year-old is not the only player Villa are likely to offload at the end of the season, with Bertrand Traore also believed to be on the chopping block.
Konsa has been outstanding since he joined , between him and mings id take konsa all day long ,mings is the worst defender who cant attack the ball in his own penalty box has shocking positional sense ,he cant read the game ,only thing going for him is his ability to carry the ball forward and thats not good enough if your a 6 foot 4 inch center half ,konsa has been a consistent 8 hes composed on the ball defends better and does the simple things well .
Konsa is the most consistent of the centrebacks on the verge of England call up not to long ago form this season a little erratic but that’s the form of the other c.backs.and his covering for their mistakes.still the best defender at the club .to sell him big mistake by Stevie g.
Konsa is the best centre back at the club, this season he is over worked covering Cash and Mings plus he has no defensive midfield cover ahead of him.