Aston Villa Star Fuming After What Emery did v Man City

Aston Villa midfielder Ross Barkley appeared to be fuming when Unai Emery subbed on Donyell Malen over him against Manchester City.

The Villans suffered a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Pep Guardiola’s side on Tuesday night, conceding a stoppage-time winner to Matheus Nunes. It was a crucial blow in Villa’s pursuit of finishing in the Champions League places, and they currently sit in seventh place in the table.

Barkley has struggled to find regular game time since his move to Villa Park, often utilised from the bench for the Midlands club. The English midfielder has been on the treatment table in recent months before returning over the last week or so, and he didn’t appear best pleased not to be brought on against Man City.

Ross Barkley Fumes With Unai Emery

The Aston Villa midfielder was on the bench

A video spotted the reaction of Aston Villa midfielder Barkley after Emery opted to bring on Malen rather than the England international. Barkley certainly didn’t appear best pleased, rolling his eyes and shaking his head while the camera unfortunately caught his reaction.

Emery made five substitutions for Aston Villa in the 2-1 defeat at the Etihad Stadium, with Malen, Ollie Watkins, John McGinn, Axel Disasi, and Marco Asensio all coming off the bench. Barkley remained seated, which somewhat sums up his time at the club so far.

The 31-year-old has started just three Premier League games this season and is clearly not in the immediate plans of Emery. It will be interesting to see whether Barkley is happy at the club or not, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he looked for a move in the summer transfer window due to his lack of game time.