Aston Villa signing this 25-year-old from London giants for free should be an absolute no-brainer and here’s why

Aston Villa Opinion: Todd Kane could prove to be a useful player at depth for the Lions

According to Hull Daily Mail, Aston Villa are interested in signing out-of-contract Chelsea defender Todd Kane on a free transfer in the summer window.

Kane spent the last season on loan at Hull City in the Championship and established himself as one of Nigel Adkins’ most trusted players, making a total of 39 appearances for the Tigers in the league.

The 25-year-old featured predominantly at right-back but he also filled in at a multitude of other positions in the midfield, contributing with 3 goals and an assist in the process.

The 25-year-old joined Chelsea as a kid at the Under-8 level back in 2001 and rose quickly through the youth ranks, playing a key role in the Blues’  2011-12 FA Youth Cup triumph.

Kane never really came close to breaking into the first-team at Stamford Bridge, though, spent time on loan at eight different clubs, including Blackburn Rovers, Nottingham Forest, Oxford United, Bristol City, Preston North End, as well as Nijmegen and Groningen in the Dutch Eredivisie.

Kane’s loan stint at Hull City this past season was the eighth and the last of Chelsea career, and with the 25-year-old out-of-contract at the end of June, his miserable time at the capital is surely coming to an end.

However, he has shown enough promise in the Championship and his profile as a player has seemingly convinced Aston Villa to offer him a chance to stay in the Premier League.

Essentially a right-back by trade, Kane is noted for his versatility to play in multiple positions across the backline and also in the midfield. The 25-year-old has been used as a left-back, as well as a wing-back and an out-and-out winger on either side of the pitch to good effect over the course of his various loan spells in the Championship.

Hence, it is pretty clear that Kane is capable of adding a lot of value to any squad with his flamboyance and versatility.

To put things into perspective, Aston Villa have every reason to look at Kane as a utility squad depth player in the Premier League next season.

Agreed, he hasn’t played in the top-flight before, but with a wealth of Championship and Eredivisie experience under his belt, one would expect him to make the step up to the Premier League at the age of 25.

Kane doesn’t need to be a world-beater to arrive at Villa Park this summer because the Lions are probably only looking at him as someone who could offer a bit more depth in multiple areas of the pitch.

The Chelsea man won’t be a marquee signing for Villa by any means, neither would he be expected to play a significant role for the Lions in the top-flight next season, but he could solve a lot of headaches for Dean Smith and company.

Villa confirmed the release of experienced players like Tommy Elphick, Mile Jedinak and Alan Hutton at the back following their victory over Derby County in the EFL Championship playoff final.

Although they are likely to have the services of the highly-rated Frederic Guilbert at right-back next season, having Todd Kane as a back-up won’t do them much harm given the Frenchman’s lack of Premier League experience.

The Lions can also afford to rely on the experience of Ahmed Elmohamady but the Egyptian international is going to turn 32 and one would not expect him to play week-in-week-out.

They are also closing in on a permanent deal for Wolves loanee Kortney Hause, who is capable of playing at both centre-back and left-back, whilst Bournemouth loanee Tyrone Mings’s future still remains up in the air. (Express and Star)

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Kane is a really talented and versatile player and the prospect of getting him on board for absolutely nothing should appeal to a newly-promoted club like Aston Villa. The 25-year-old surely won’t get the fans on their feet but he could prove to be a useful addition for free, nevertheless.