Former Aston Villa forward Gabby Agbonlahor has waxed lyrical over the club’s recent move for Robin Olsen on a permanent basis, as per Football Insider.

The Lowdown: Fourth summer signing

NSWE have already backed Steven Gerrard ahead of his first full season in charge by making four signings so far. The most recent of those was Olsen, who - like Philippe Coutinho - converted his loan move into a permanent deal.

Villa reportedly paid around €3.5m (£3m) for the Sweden international, with the club now turning their attention to Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The Latest: Agbonlahor reacts to Olsen transfer

Agbonlahor, who contributes as a pundit for Sky Sports, was talking to Football Insider regarding Villa’s business so far.

He described the club’s permanent move for Olsen as ‘crucial’, describing the goalkeeper's performance on his Villans debut against Manchester City last month as ‘very good’ .

Agbonlahor said:

“Sorting the goalkeeper out was crucial.

“Martinez does travel a lot with Argentina, he says he suffered with jet lag this season (2021-22) and if your first-choice gets injured you want a second-choice who’s good enough, not one that you don’t trust.

“I thought Olsen was very good against Man City. He was probably a bit nervous with his kicking but I’m sure that will come and it’s something Villa will be working on.”

The Verdict: Good start…

As Agbonlahor mentions, bringing in Olsen on a full-time basis was a smart piece of business. Moves for Coutinho, Boubacar Kamara and Diego Carlos also appear to be exciting coups, with Villa’s summer expenditure so far just shy of £50m.

Indeed, the Swedish stopper put in a decent display against City, making two saves on the day. Also, as Agbonlahor pointed out, first-choice 'keeper Martinez was frequently hopping across the Atlantic to play for Argentina throughout the season, so it would not be ideal for Gerrard to flog him remorselessly.

Reports in recent months have claimed that NSWE are likely to spend more than £150m this summer and are expected to break their transfer record once again, so it could be an eye-catching few months following a positive start to the window as Gerrard looks to take Villa to the next level.

In other news: Gerrard set to axe £18m-rated Villa pair next after Targett; 'very important' Smith star may go