Agbonlahor Exclusive: £11m Villa star tipped to be axed & teen to play v West Ham | OneFootball

Gabriel Agbonlahor has tipped Aston Villa youngster Jacob Ramsey to play ahead of Marvelous Nakamba against West Ham on Monday.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley, the legendary former Villa striker insisted the 19-year-old’s performances in the Carabao Cup showed he deserves an opportunity.

Ross Barkley will miss the visit to the London Stadium with an ankle injury he picked up against Brighton last weekend.

Bertrand Traore replaced the England international at Villa Park and will battle it out with Conor Hourihane to be selected against the Hammers.

Asked by Football Insider whether it could allow Ramsey to be given a first-team opportunity, Agbonlahor said: “I would definitely like to see him in the squad.

“When you look at that midfield the next person I’d like to see in there is Hourihane.

“But after Hourihane who can you have on the bench? Nakamba is one that hasn’t been given a lot of minutes so why not choose a young lad who showed in the Carabao Cup how good of a player he is.

“For me, definitely Jacob Ramsey should be at least on the bench. He can add that attacking threat that we’ll be missing without Ross Barkley.”

Nakamba moved to Aston Villa for a reported £11million fee from Club Brugge last summer and has only featured in one Premier League game this term.

Ramsey has played four times for the first team this season and grabbed his first assist against Bristol City in the third round of the Carabao Cup in September.

In other Aston Villa news, West Ham have been tipped to axe a £22million ace and hand a new to their talisman against Villa.