Midfielder Craig Gardner has welcomed the imminent addition of Steve Sidwell – despite the fact it could push him further down the Villa Park pecking order.
Chelsea midfielder Sidwell is set to become Martin O’Neill’s first acquisition of the summer, with Villa hoping to rubber stamp his £5.5m move next week.
Sidwell’s signature would be sure to further stiffen competition in the Villa engine room, although his arrival is still expected to be offset by the departure of skipper Gareth Barry to Liverpool.
Nonetheless, that would still leave Nigel Reo-Coker, Stiliyan Petrov and Isaiah Osbourne to fight it out with Gardner and Sidwell for the two central slots and further midfield arrivals are still possible.
Despite the threat to his place, Gardner insists he is excited by the prospect of Sidwell’s arrival, describing the 25-year-old as the complete midfielder.
He said: “It speaks for itself, doesn’t it? It’s a great signing and I can’t wait for him to get down here.
“He’s got everything: he can score goals. He got two against Villa two seasons ago.
“He has got a good engine, he can tackle, he can pass.
“He is just a typical box to box midfielder, a top class player.”
“If new players come in it makes me work harder in training and out there on the pitch. That’s what every footballer’s like. We are competitive.”
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