Jamaican winger Leon Bailey reaffirmed his commitment to Aston Villa while accusing the media of misconstruing his words in a post to Instagram on Thursday.
“Please do not misconstrue my words. I am dedicated to Aston Villa and focused on delivering the best season for our club ever. I love my club and our loyal fans. UTV,” the post read.
He was responding to a report by Sky Sports that suggested that he “would like to join a ‘big six’ team in the Premier League, despite signing a new deal at Aston Villa last month”, based on comments he made during an interview on Let’s Be Honest podcast in Jamaica.
Bailey had been asked if would be interested in a move to Chelsea in the near future considering that compatriots Dujuan Richards and Raheem Sterling are part of the ‘Blues’ squad.
He replied: “You have big teams in England, they call themselves the big six. The Arsenals and the Chelseas. It has always been my dream to play in the Premier League and I am right now.
“Who wouldn’t want to go to a massive team? Especially coming out of Jamaica, do you know how big that is for the country? Especially being who I am as well,” he continued, adding “I don’t know how to answer that question, but I’d have to see in the moment.”
Bailey has been in a media firestorm since the airing of the interview where he upbraided the Jamaica Football Federation and declared that he will “take a break” from the Jamaican national team over issues stemming from what he called a low level of professionalism.
