MX23RW : Wednesday, January 1 20:39:30| >> :120:6886:6886:

Steve Bruce opens door for Gabriel Agbonlahor return

New Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce insists that former club captain Gabby Agbonlahor will have a clean slate following his arrival at Villa Park.

Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce has opened the door for Gabriel Agbonlahor to work his way back into the first team.

Agbonlahor has not featured for the club since March, having been deemed unfit by Eric Black towards the end of last season and fallen out of favour under Roberto Di Matteo.

The 30-year-old's off-field behaviour also saw him stripped of the club captaincy, but Bruce insists that the former England international will have a clean slate following his arrival.

"I'm not really interested in what has happened in the past. As far as I'm concerned this is under my remit," he told reporters.

"Of course managers get problems to deal with but at this moment in time I've got none. I've only been here for 24 hours and as far as I'm concerned the slate is wiped clean for all of them.

"We start again tomorrow. That obviously means Gabby too. He's had his problems and it's fair to say he and I have got to get him into some condition, but that applies to him too."

Agbonlahor is Villa's record goalscorer in the Premier League.

ID:283235: cacheID:283235:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2149:
Written by
Barney Corkhill
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Steve Bruce watches on during the Championship playoff semi-final between Derby County and Hull City on May 14, 2016
Read Next:
Bruce: 'Villa can still win promotion'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool18143145172845
2Arsenal19116238172139
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest1911442619737
4Chelsea19105438231535
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle1995532211132
6Manchester CityMan City199463226631
7Bournemouth198652923630
8Fulham197842825329
9Aston Villa198562831-329
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton196942928127
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1973941281324
12Brentford197393335-224
13West Ham UnitedWest Ham196582335-1223
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd196492126-522
15Crystal Palace194872027-720
16Everton183871524-917
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1944113142-1116
18Ipswich TownIpswich1936101833-1515
19Leicester CityLeicester1935112242-2014
20Southampton1913151239-276


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!