Davis tipped to join Villa first-team next season

Keinan Davis has an uncertain future at Aston Villa after being loaned out to Nottingham Forest last season, but the Reds opting against turning the move permanent means he’ll return to Bodymoor Heath for pre-season, unsure whether he’ll have a place under Steven Gerrard next season.

The 24-year-old is likely to be behind Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings in the pecking order and is at risk of being overtaken by Cameron Archer too, so Davis might be better off switching clubs. Gabriel Agbonlahor isn’t ruling out a return, however, as he believes Gerrard will run the rule over him being making a decision.

He told Football Insider: “You never know, Steven Gerrard might want to give him a full pre-season to show what he can do. He showed at Nottingham Forest what he can do and there is no reason why he cannot force his way into Steven Gerrard’s plans. He’s a player I really admire. A player with such speed and aggression and he’s a great finisher too.”

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Davis joined Villa from Biggleswade Town in 2015 and has gone on to make 86 appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals with seven assists. The 24-year-old has just one goal in 34 Premier League games, so he’s not exactly prolific or a sharp finisher at the top level.

He did impress while on loan at Forest, however, scoring five goals with two assists from 18 games, so is the Championship more his level? That’s what Gerrard must decide, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see Davis play some friendlies in pre-season before being offered out to clubs.

In other news, Steven Gerrard doesn’t need to sign Alessio Romagnoli