Aston Villa have confirmed that Joe Gauci has joined Barnsley on loan for the remainder of the season in a sensible move from the club.
The 24-year-old arrived from Adelaide Utd in January last year, and he has since gone on to make just two appearances for Villa in a back-up role behind Emiliano Martinez and Robin Olsen.
READ MORE: Five key talking points as Villa see off Celtic in Champions League thriller
While Gauci would have benefited greatly from training alongside Martinez every day, he also needs to gain valuable experience through regular playing time to improve and develop his game, and he’ll get an opportunity to do that in the coming months.
As per Villa’s statement, the Australian international has joined Barnsley on loan for the rest of the season, as he’ll hope to quickly establish himself and play a pivotal role in their push for promotion from League One.
The hope is that Gauci returns in the summer a better player ready to take over from Olsen as our No.2, with the Swedish stalwart’s contract set to expire at the end of the season, and the expectation is that he’ll move on to make way for our younger goalkeepers to come through.
Having shown faith in the Aussie shot-stopper by swooping for him from Adelaide last year, Villa have evidently spotted a talent that they rate highly, and so it’s hoped that this slight detour away from the club works out well in the long run.
Our early exit from the Carabao Cup would certainly have been a key factor in this decision, as with Gauci emerging as the starter in that competition, he lost the chance to continue to feature with Martinez rested, and so this temporary fix should suit all concerned with a view of benefiting Villa in the long-term future.
