Dean Smith handing a fresh deal to this Steve Bruce signing would be the right way forward for Aston Villa

Why Aston Villa should hand Albert Adomah a new contract

Ghana international Albert Adomah is in the final year of his contract at Aston Villa but is yet to be offered a new deal by the club.

According to Gazzette Live, the 30-year-old winger looked set for a return to Middlesbrough in the final stages of the summer loan window, only for the deal to collapse. With the January transfer window fast approaching, Albert Adomah has again been linked with a move away from Aston Villa.

However, Adomah’s agent, Anthony Finnigan, has quashed any rumours of an exit and has instead claimed that his client is doing everything to impress new manager Dean Smith in order to earn a new contract at Villa Park.

The report says Aston Villa have the option of extending the Ghana ace’s contract by a year, but it’s unclear whether that will be triggered.

With Middlesbrough and Leeds United keeping tabs on Adomah’s situation, what should Aston Villa do? Albert Adomah signed for Aston Villa from Middlesbrough in 2016 under Dean Smith’s predecessor, Steve Bruce. After a really good debut season at Villa Park, the 30-year-old found game time much harder to come by.

His struggles for regular game time became so clear that it looked like he would leave Villa Park in summer for pastures new. However, no deal materialised and he stayed put at the club.

But since Steve Bruce’s departure, Albert Adomah has become a key figure under new manager Dean Smith. He has made 16 appearances across all competitions, with just a single assist to his name so far this term.

The Ghanaian winger may not have delivered plenty of goals and assists but his work ethic and willingness to compete until the final whistle have been commendable.

In fact, Dean Smith lauded Adomah last month for his performance in Villa’s 2-1 defeat against Norwich City in the Championship.

Smith has a number of options on the wings, with the likes of Jonathan Kodjia, Anwar El Ghazi and Yannick Bolasie in his ranks. However, Bolasie and El Ghazi are on loan deals and will return to their parent club at the end of the current season. And should Villa not tie Adomah to a new deal, they would lose him for free in the summer of 2019.

Read more: Who is this Brentford star on Aston Villa’s radar? Would Dean Smith benefit by signing him?

Hence, it is important for Villa to keep hold of the experienced and hard-working Albert Adomah beyond the current campaign.

He has managed to impress the new manager so far and should be handed a new contract as quickly as possible.