Nigerian-born former England international, Gabriel Agbonlahor, has lambasted Chelsea star, Ross Barkley, after the club stripped him of his squad number.
Barkley was once compared to the likes of Paul Gascoigne and Michael Ballack, Gazza and other football legends by managers and pundits.
The 27-year-old former Everton star joined Chelsea in 2018 and inherited Frank Lampard’s very own No. 8 shirt and played under the Blues legend at Stamford Bridge.
But that number has been ripped off him and handed to Croatian midfielder Mateo Kovacic.
And with the transfer window shut, there is a very real chance the 27-year-old does not play a single game for the Blues this season as nobody wanted to sign him on loan and pay his £100, 000 weekly wages.
And Agbonlahor sees this as a dramatic fall from grace for a midfielder, who can also play as a winger.
7Agbonlahor, who watched Barkley on loan at Aston Villa last season, said he is not surprised that no club tried to sign him, adding that the 27-year-old died off so fast.
“He started off really well, but just died off really easily. His performances were really bad at Aston Villa,” Agbonlahor told talkSPORT.
“He just didn’t look interested and he fell off so badly that Dean Smith wasn’t even using him as one of his three subs.
“Other Premier League clubs are going to look at that and say, ‘Look at your last ten games at Aston Villa’.
“Why would they sign him on loan, covering £100,000-a-week of his wages, when he didn’t look interested at Aston Villa?
“No club would’ve touched him in the Premier League. He’s going to struggle because his wages will affect him moving.
“If he was on a free transfer, a club would take him, they’d give him less money, but they’d give him a chance. He’s only 27.”
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