Amir Khan faces his last chance to prove he's not a man out of time in the ring against Samuel Vargas

Lose in Birmingham on Saturday and the divisive 31-year-old's top-level career is over

Like The Kooks, Simon Amstell or red skinny jeans, Amir Khan feels like an entity stuck permanently in the mid-2000s. He’s an enigma who seems to have discovered zero personal growth since his emergence as a 17-year-old sensation at the 2004 Olympic Games, while his boxing prowess has stalled at a similar level.

Now 13 years into his professional career, Khan is as divisive as ever. For some, he’ll always be an exciting boxer who is as brave as they come every time he competes, while for others his career will continue to frustrate and annoy whenever he appears in the ring. The simplicity of Khan is also his fatal flaw, with his single-minded approach allowing constant belief, which occasionally lapses into delusion.

At 31, time is ticking for a fighter whose main weapons are speed of both hand and foot, and the next 12 months will forever define his career, despite a successful past. Win against Samuel Vargas this weekend and an end-of-year bout with either Kell Brook or Manny Pacquiao is all but assured. Lose, and it’s the end of the line for boxing at a level other than pure gimmick.

A sense of uneasiness around Khan has haunted him throughout his entire career, with misconceptions and angst eventually becoming fully-fledged realities. The fragilities and irregular concentration that peppered his early bouts ceased to become adorable once the competition increased.

Yes, there was glory, but the legacy of Khan is not one of a two-weight world champion, but instead of rapid hand-speed eventually negated before a crushing stoppage defeat. Khan’s image to the public is a simpleton’s gaze looking up from the canvas, but there is time to change that mind-set.

If Khan finally steps into the ring with Brook and beats him, what must feel like a lifetime of degradation would finally be lifted. Khan and Brook have engaged in a tedious feud over the past five years that wouldn’t count as entertainment on Emmerdale. They have teased the nation with a will they/won’t they vibe worse than Ross and Rachel in Friends, but the public interest will materialise if they eventually fight.

So, what of Vargas, the man with the opportunity to end any lingering hopes of Khan’s future success? The kindest thing to say is that he has a pretty record, with 29 victories against just three defeats and two draws. The attractiveness would get him a Littlewoods photoshoot, but the reality is that he has consistently failed to achieve success when faced with any opponent of note.

Amir Khan celebrates with his camp (Getty Images)

Stoppage defeats to Danny Garcia and Errol Spence are not disgraceful results – indeed, both Khan and Brook have fallen to the American stars in a similar manner – but it’s the lack of style Vargas has achieved in his victories which make him such an outsider against Khan.

In his last three bouts, against faded opposition, Vargas has eked out a draw, a split decision success and a majority decision victory. He has never been a fighter who dominates his matches. There is no elegance to the style, or significant power in either hand. He simply turns up, walks forward and whatever happens, happens.

That style is perfect for Khan, whose best successes have come against opponents who shell up when the going gets tough. The sheer speed of Khan’s punches has dazzled world-class fighters like Saul Alvarez and Marcos Maidana, so to average boxers they can be absolutely devastating.

Expect Khan to do exactly as he did in his recent comeback bout against Phil Lo Greco back in April. He began the fight with serious intensity and overwhelmed his static opponent before finishing him in the first round. A similarly timed victory against Vargas seems unlikely as the Colombian-Canadian has a solid chin, but by the middle rounds he is likely to be outgunned and stopped.

If you’re a fan of cringe comedy, then by all means keep the TV on after the fight, as Khan and Brook will no doubt continue their war of words at ringside to set up a winter showdown. Talented athletes no doubt, but neither man has much ability on the microphone, with their previous verbal battles an inelegant and often unintelligible mess.

Considering Khan vs Vargas opens the boxing schedule for Sky Sports for the rest of 2018, the undercard in Birmingham is nothing short of disgraceful. Aside from Jason Welborn and Tommy Langford rematching for the British middleweight title, there is very little on offer, excluding tick over bouts for Lewis Ritson and Sam Eggington.