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Dean Smith is ‘not welcoming’ any bids for Aston Villa’s out-of-favour man in January

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Image for Dean Smith is ‘not welcoming’ any bids for Aston Villa’s out-of-favour man in January

Dean Smith played down the prospect of Jonathan Kodjia being sold in January, insisting there have been no offers for the Aston Villa striker and saying he is “not welcoming” any approaches in the last few days of the transfer window. Ligue 1 side Angers were linked with a move earlier in January, but Smith has no intention of letting Kodjia leave.

He said to Birmingham Live: “We’ve not spoken of that at all. He is second top scorer at the club and there is no reason we would be looking for Jonathan to leave. He (Kodjia) has been the one who would come in for Tammy Abraham and he has played wide left for us as well. I do not know of any interests or bids for our players and we are not welcoming any.”

Despite such comments, Kodjia appears to have an uncertain future at Villa Park after losing his place in the starting lineup. The 29-year-old was once a regular in the side, but now he finds himself behind Tammy Abraham in the pecking order. Sometimes the Ivorian international even has to operate in a lesser-fancied left-wing role just to get minutes on the pitch.

Kodjia has made 27 Championship appearances this season but has started only 63% of the games. The former Bristol City man is Villa’s second-highest scorer with six goals to his name, but he still finds himself as an afterthought – racking up just 201 minutes of league football since November.

While Abraham continues to score goals, Kodjia stands little chance of edging out the Chelsea loanee. Next season could be a different story as Abraham will return to his parent club, but Kodjia will surely want assurances over the summer that he’ll be a key player again.

Crippy Cooke’s previous article

Aston Villa man ‘poised to join’ promotion-chasers on loan, Dean Smith ‘happy’ to let him go

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