Lucas Digne: Why Aston Villa's Frenchman is no Centre-back

Nothing sums up Aston Villa’s defensive problems right now quite like Unai Emery’s decision to move left-back Lucas Digne to centre-back during Sunday’s 1-1 draw with West Ham. With Tyrone Mings reduced to tears after suffering what looks to be another lengthy injury, Emery was forced to move the experienced Digne to centre-half.

The Frenchman struggled to get to grips with his newfound position, and after West Ham left-back Emerson had cancelled out Jacob Ramsey’s early opener, Digne nearly handed the visitors the lead with a wayward back pass. Digne’s performance drew criticism from Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher at full-time and highlighted Villa’s need for a new centre-half before the January transfer window shuts. 

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“Digne has had an absolute nightmare on the ball since going to centre-back,” Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports. “He has constantly put his goalkeeper and teammates under pressure. He’s been really poor.”