Aston Villa must beware improving Brighton man who was once a transfer target

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Aston Villa take on Brighton in the Premier League this weekend, and Dean Smith’s side will be feeling confident.

The Midlands outfit produced their best performance of the season against Norwich City before the international break, sweeping the Canaries aside 5-1.

Smith said after the game that that kind of result had been coming, and he’ll hope to see another ruthless attacking performance for Saturday’s visit of the Seagulls.

Brighton also put in their best display of the season before the international break, easily beating struggling Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 at the Amex Stadium.

One man who really stood out that day was midfielder Aaron Mooy, who is coming into his own now on the south coast following his summer loan.

TBR’s view

Villa need to watch out for the 29-year-old, who was actually linked with a move to Villa Park in 2017. The World Game claimed a bid was actually lodged for Mooy, but nothing materialised.

Against Spurs, Mooy was a constant threat and was taking up clever positions in between the lines where he could hurt the visitors – arguably it was his most positive showing to date for Brighton.

And on international duty with Australia, Mooy’s positivity has continued with good showings against Nepal (whom he managed an assist against) and Chinese Taipai.

He’s taken his time to adapt to his new team, but he has started the last three games and appears to now have the trust of manager Graham Potter, and he is definitely a cause for concern for Villa ahead of the weekend clash.