Aston Villa rejects who would've fared better than current XI

Infuriating its fans, Aston Villa has allowed a wealth of talent to leave via transfer activity over the past few years - a damning indictment of the club's lack of ambition.

Christian Benteke and Fabian Delph were sold last summer, and recent campaigns have seen the likes of Ashley Young, Stewart Downing, James Milner, and Gareth Barry leave Villa Park.

But almost as damaging is the players who were deemed not good enough for Aston Villa. Here is an XI comprised of those dumped by the club, but who would've fared better than those fielded in the Premier League this season:

GK - Shay Given

Now aged 40 and third choice at Stoke City, it's difficult to make a reasonable argument that the flapping and perpetually confused Brad Guzan is a better option between the sticks than Shay Given. The 133-time Ireland international played in Villa's run to the 2015 FA Cup final, but was released at the end of last season. He could've offered a calming presence behind a faltering back four.

RB - Matthew Lowton

Matthew Lowton could be switching spots with many of his former teammates upon the conclusion of the Championship campaign. Burnley is in pole position for a return to the top flight, and Lowton, who left for around £1 million last July, has helped forge the third-best defence in the division.

CB - James Collins

Slowly phased out under Slaven Bilic, but previously a regular rock at the back for West Ham United, where he's affectionately known as "Ginge," he was allowed to leave after Paul Lambert opted for a partnership of Ron Vlaar with either Nathan Baker or Ciaran Clark in the middle of defence.

CB - Gary Cahill

Perhaps the biggest oversight in Aston Villa's comings and goings over the past few decades is charged to Martin O'Neill, who sent Gary Cahill out on loan to Burnley and Sheffield United before selling him to Bolton Wanderers for a paltry £4.5 million. The 41-time England international and winner of five major honours with Chelsea was unable to usurp Olof Mellberg and Martin Laursen in defence.

LB - Nathan Baker

Beating the Portland Timbers' Liam Ridgewell to left-back is Nathan Baker, still on the books at Aston Villa but currently on a season-long loan at Bristol City. He's been a rare bright spot at times for the Robins, and could be given a second chance at Villa in the second tier.

RM - Wayne Routledge

At 31, Wayne Routledge is showing some premature decline in what has been his worst season at Swansea City, but no player has auditioned well on the right for Villa this term. Routledge is adept on both flanks, and will certainly put more graft in than wage vacuum Charles N'Zogbia.

CM - Barry Bannan

Barry Bannan failed to make the grade after progressing through the ranks and left for Crystal Palace in 2013. He'll lead a Championship playoff charge with Sheffield Wednesday in May, and name an Aston Villa player who would've attempted this in 2015-16:

CM - Craig Gardner

After a controversial move to archrival Birmingham City, Craig Gardner soon became a vital cog in the midfield of first Sunderland and then West Bromwich Albion. Both he and his brother Gary, currently on loan at Nottingham Forest, could've put in a better shift than any of Villa's anonymous central midfield this season.

LM - Marc Albrighton

Released in the summer of 2014 after 86 top-flight appearances, Marc Albrighton looks increasingly likely to pick up a Premier League winners' medal with Leicester City. His crosses from the left could've worked well with Rudy Gestede's aerial presence this term, but instead Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy have been the beneficiaries of his fine work.

FW - Darren Bent

Darren Bent signed for a club-record fee in excess of £18 million in 2011, but was strangely phased out of the first team in his second full season. In sorry times that saw Libor Kozak called into the lineup, Bent could've offered a much better option. The 32-year-old has 12 goals over 15 appearances despite being sporadically used in one-and-a-half seasons at Derby County.

FW - Peter Crouch

Completing an aged strikeforce is Peter Crouch, Stoke City's ungainly 35-year-old forward. He has struggled for game time in the Potteries lately, but he could stand still and offer more threat than Gabriel Agbonlahor. He was sold to Southampton for £2.5 million in 2004, and his value swelled to over £8 million when he left for Liverpool a year later.