Aston Villa are reportedly set to recall Lewis Dobbin from his loan spell at West Bromwich Albion this month, given his lack of playing time in the first half of the season.
Villa signed the 21-year-old from Everton last summer, but after a brief spell with us during pre-season, the decision was made to loan him out for the season as he joined the Baggies in August.
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Unfortunately, he has gone on to make just 18 appearances so far this season, totalling 397 minutes of football during that time, and with a limited role at the Hawthorns, it doesn’t appear to be a great fit for the attacker in his bid to get regular minutes and develop his game.
In turn, according to the Express and Star, Villa are now expected to recall him this month and will look for a more suitable landing spot that will give him the opportunity to secure a more prominent role.
Whether it’s with the strategy of eventually integrating him into Unai Emery’s squad or perhaps to maximise his value and make a profit on him if he doesn’t fit into our plans, it’s in everyone’s best interests for Dobbin to play regularly and showcase his potential, and so this first step makes a lot of sense.
Once the decision to end his West Brom loan stint is made, it will be interesting to see who shows interest as Villa will weigh up their options, and the expectation is that there could be a few other loanees in a similar position in January as we assess how the first half of the campaign has gone for them.
Further, it will continue to form part of our wider strategy in managing our finances and strengthening Emery’s current squad, and so time will tell if there is significant activity at Villa through the course of the January transfer window.
