Steven Gerrard is reportedly planning to raid his former club Rangers for Joe Aribo.
The Liverpool legend arrived at Villa Park on November 11 to replace boyhood fan Dean Smith. He is tasked with turning the club’s immediate fortunes around and guiding them back into contention for European places.
Gerrard’s reign got off to a great start as Aston Villa beat Brighton 2-0 on Saturday, a game that https://www.casinoroo.io/ placed on several odds. Ollie Watkins broke the deadlock in the 84th minute with a curling strike, before Tyrone Mings secured the points with a first-time finish.
The victory saw them move up to 15th in the Premier League table, while also ending their five-game losing streak.
Despite the impressive performance, Gerrard is busy working behind the scenes on their January transfer plan.
Nigerian international Aribo is said to be top of his wish list. According to The Birmingham Mail’s Preece, along with the likes of Glen Kamara, Aribo is being targeted.
He said: ” Yeah, (Kamara) is the one that appears most-likely from Gerrard’s Rangers links. We’ll see what materialises. Aribo, or the left-footed Yaya Toure as he’s been labelled by close pal Konsa, has been on Villa’s radar before like you say. Can he cut it in the Premier League, that’s the question… Kamara most-likely out of them but Gerrard will have his own players he likes knowing Villa’s budget blows Rangers’ out of the water. Intrigued to see how Gerrard will work with Johan Lange. Ross Wilson was Gerrard’s sporting director at Gers.”
Having initially signed him for Rangers from Charlton, Gerrard has been very vocal in his praise of the midfielder, even going so far as to saying that he hoped he would be able to manage him for a long time.
Speaking after a particularly impressive performance against East Fife, Gerrard said of Aribo: “I am not sure how many good players have been at this stadium, but I don’t think you will see many better than Joe. Top players turn up anywhere, it doesn’t matter if it is in front of 50,000, or 1500, your standards are always the same and from day one Joe has done that. He was outstanding from start to finish.
“He can go as far as he wants. I hope he stays alongside me for many years, but he’s got the world at his feet.”
The 25-year-old Aribo ended up playing 112 times for Gerrard’s Rangers in his time north of the border, scoring 20 goals and providing another 18 assists as he embraced a real box-to-box role at Ibrox.
Given how well the Englishman knows the midfielder, he would surely be able to hit the ground running at Villa and understand what he wants from him.
Born in Camberwell, London, Aribo started playing at the youth ranks of Isthmian League Premier Division club Staines Town, winning the club’s Academy Player of the Year award back in April 2014.
He joined Charlton Athletic in the Championship in September 2015 following a successful trial and put pen to paper on a new deal in May 2016.
Aribo made his first-team debut for the Addicks against Crawley Town in an EFL Trophy group stage game back in October 2016 before earning his League One debut in the same season.
The youngster made 19 appearances for Charlton in the league in his breakthrough season and impressed with as many as 6 assists before establishing himself as one of the regulars in the 2017-18 campaign.
Aribo featured on 26 occasions for the Addicks in League One in the 2017-18 season and contributed with 5 goals and 2 assists, earning rave reviews for his performances in the process.
The 25-year-old made a total of 97 appearances for Charlton Athletic in all competitions over the course of three seasons, accumulating 16 goals and 15 assists.
Noted for his pace, power, drive and determination, Aribo is capable of playing in multiple positions in the middle of the park, having featured in attacking midfield, box-to-box, defensive and wide roles for Charlton Athletic.
Standing at 1.83m with a towering and well-built frame, Aribo looks like a real athlete when he runs forward or challenges for the ball on the pitch, with his physicality being one of his key attributes.
An agile, energetic and tough-tackling presence in the middle, the youngster combines his raw power with his sharpness, anticipation and positioning skills to break up the play and win possession back for his team with crucial tackles and interceptions.
Blessed with plenty of upper body strength and good balance, Aribo hardly ever goes to the ground after dispossessing the opposition and always looks for an opportunity to release the ball forward quickly to set up a brisk counter-attack.
The 25-year-old, who loves to play games at best online casino Canada, is not only a ball-winner in the middle of the park but he also plays the role of a ball carrier- driving forward with pace and aggressiveness and often picking out the right passes to create goalscoring chances.
He is not only about pace and power, though, with his dribbling skills, speed of thought, presence of mind and well-rounded shooting ability making him a more complete player.
