Aston Villa youngster Rushian Hepburn-Murphy has left the club in order to join League Two side Cambridge United on loan until the end of this season.
The 20-year-old Hepburn-Murphy famously became Villa’s second youngest player ever to turn out for the first-team when he came off the bench during the club’s 4-0 Premier League victory against Sunderland in March 2015.
Since being integrated into the Villa first-team in 2015, the England U-20 international has made 15 appearances for the club in all competitions. Just four of those games have come this season and it seems like he is not part of manager Dean Smith’s immediate plans.
Villa have done the right thing by sending Hepburn-Murphy out on loan. His confidence would have been taking a toll due to sitting on the bench for long periods of time. He is currently below the likes of Tammy Abraham, Jonathan Kodjia, Scott Hogan and Keinan Davis in the club’s pecking order.
By joining Cambridge, Hepburn-Murphy reunites with former Villains assistant manager Colin Calderwood who is managing the side.
By joining the League Two side, he is likely to get regular action between now and the end of the season. This will allow him to learn and develop as a player. It will also present Villa with an opportunity to gauge whether the player is worthy of playing for the club.
“We’re delighted to get Rushian in as an addition to the squad for the rest of the season.” Calderwood said as reported by Express and Star.
“Firstly we would like to thank Aston Villa for allowing him out on loan to us, as I’m sure he is a young player who will have been highly sought after.”
