Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie fears Douglas Luiz will be condemned to the bench if he leaves Villa Park this summer.

This comes after Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola failed to rule out the possibility of the Citizens taking up a buy-back option they had included in the initial deal that saw Luiz join the Villans back in 2019, labelling him as "clever" on the ball.

The 22-year-old Brazilian has been a mainstay in Dean Smith's midfield this season and is now valued at £31.5m by Transfermarkt.

Hendrie, however, is not expecting him to have a similar role at City should he join their ranks given the options Guardiola already has in that area of the pitch.

On Luiz, the ex-Villa player told FFC in an exclusive interview:

"I just think, would he get into that City side? I don't think he'd get in that City team. I think he'd be going there and he'd be sitting on the sidelines, really. I just think that they've got far too much.

"It would be a bad thing if Villa did sell him because he's been brilliant."

At present, City have Fernandinho and Rodri for that deep-lying midfield position. But with the former now 34 years of age and possibly leaving the Etihad at the end of the season when his contract expires, you can understand why Guardiola may be looking to bring someone in this summer.