Ashley Preece slams 'sluggish' Aston Villa star vs Rennes

Journalist Ashley Preece has had his say on the performance of Aston Villa midfielder and summer arrival Boubacar Kamara against Rennes.

The Midlands club battled to a 2-1 victory against Rennes courtesy of goals from Leon Bailey and Diego Carlos, but Preece was not too convinced by the display of summer arrival Kamara, saying on the Claret & Blue podcast: “Kamara was a bit sluggish to begin with, and obviously they [Rennes] got a free header inside the six-yard box. Very sloppy. He almost scored again, the centre-half, as well. The marking at set plays was non-existent at times for Villa.”

Based on what Preece said, Steven Gerrard has some work to do at the training ground, with the start of the Premier League season fast approaching. The last thing that the Villa manager will want is chaos from opposition set pieces; he’ll know the importance of organisation on that front.

Meanwhile, Kamara, who was described as ‘sluggish’ by Preece, may find himself amongst those forced to compete for a place in the Villa lineup. With Jacob Ramsey and Douglas Luiz to compete with, keeping his place will not be easy.

Signed on a free transfer from Marseille, Kamara starts his Aston Villa career at a good time for the club. They’ve got plenty of competition for places, and with that competition, the chance to see players push each other to their best.

From Kamara’s perspective, however, he’ll just hope to stand out amongst those vying for a place instead of becoming lost, which is a possibility for any player if they fail to perform when called upon. He will hope to have got any remaining rust shaken away against Rennes, however, as he looks to avoid a similarly sluggish display on the opening day of the Premier League season.

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