Unai Emery views Clement Lenglet as a squad player.
That is the view of transfer journalist Dean Jones, who thinks the former Barcelona defender has been forced to accept a lesser role since his move to Aston Villa in the summer.
The same can be said with midfielder Youri Tielemans, who left Leicester City on a free transfer at the end of last season following the Foxes’ relegation back to the Championship.
“The idea was to add depth to the squad, obviously, and Emery was afraid of getting caught short,” Jones told GiveMeSport.
“Again, refer it back to what they got from Youri Tielemans and he was complaining recently about the fact that he wanted more game time and he thought he was coming in to start, but it was never the case, he was brought in to be a squad player.
“And I think it’s the same with Lenglet, he’s there to be a squad player. Probably considers himself to be better than that, but he needs to prove that and Emery is a ruthless character And he’s only going to put you in that starting-11 when he’s fully convinced that you’re worthy of it.”
During his first few months at Villa Park, Lenglet, who is set to return to Barcelona after his loan spell ends in the summer, has featured in just four matches in all competitions.