Aston Villa have confirmed that Josh Feeney has joined Huddersfield on a season-long loan deal for the upcoming campaign.
The 20-year-old has spent time out on loan with Real Union and Shrewsbury previously, as he made 39 appearances for the latter last season in an important move for his ongoing development.
READ MORE: Has Villa ace done enough to hold onto starting role next season?
At his age, it’s crucial that the talented young centre-half continues to get regular playing time to improve his game and gain valuable experience, and he’s secured an early move out on loan this summer which will hopefully benefit him when trying to settle in over pre-season.
As per the club’s statement, Feeney has joined Huddersfield on loan, and it’s hoped that it proves to be a productive stint where he is able to establish himself in a prominent role.
While there arguably might have been a temptation to keep him with the Villa squad for our pre-season plans, as noted above, this surely makes much more sense in giving him the maximum amount of time possible to adapt and integrate himself into the Huddersfield squad, and hopefully he can make a positive impression and break into the starting XI immediately.
Feeney would undoubtedly have had a very limited role with Villa this summer had he stayed, and given the level of competition and depth we have in the first-team squad, it’s questionable as to whether or not we’ll see him enjoy a sustained run in the side further down the line.
A successful loan spell at Huddersfield will hopefully raise his value significantly, and in turn, he could prove to be an important individual when it comes to raising funds from a sale to help us with our PSR position moving forward.
We’ve seen Villa adopt a similar strategy with many of our talented youngsters over the past two years or so, and so while ideally we’d see him enjoy a breakthrough with us, a permanent sale next summer might prove to be important in our push to balance our books and ensure we remain complaint with the financial rules ahead of the next set of accounts after this month’s deadline.
For now though, his focus will be on his latest loan stint, and it’s hoped that he’s able to enjoy a productive time at Huddersfield to further his career.
