Aston Villa could be looking ahead to the January transfer window to strengthen the squad upon the arrival of new manager Unai Emery last month, and a new update has emerged from a reliable source on one potential target.
What’s the latest?
According to Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor, Villa are looking to sign France and Borussia Monchengladbach striker Marcus Thuram next month, as he could be a more attainable prospect than Joao Felix.
Taylor told GIVEMESPORT: “There are other targets that Villa are looking at that are probably much more attainable than Félix. One being Marcus Thuram who is out of contract at the end of the season and free to negotiate with foreign clubs in January. I see that as a realistic January target that could be available at a cut price.”
Huge Danny Ings upgrade
Emery was only just getting settled in at Villa Park before the World Cup break put club football on hold for over a month, but there is no doubt that the former Villarreal boss will already be working hard to improve the performances of his new team when they return to action against Liverpool on Boxing Day.
Villa are currently 12th in the Premier League after climbing the table with three wins from their last five in the top flight, and with the 51-year-old unbeaten in his first two league games, he will be hoping that the Villans can be in a good position to compete for a top-half finish at the end of the season.
As a result, the signing of Thuram could be the boost that Villa need in order to improve their consistency in front of goal and ultimately pick up crucial points over the second half of the campaign.
The £8.5m-priced World Cup finalist – who was dubbed “exceptional” by his manager Daniel Farke – has scored 41 goals and registered 26 assists in 119 appearances for Gladbach so far, with a goal contribution every 119 minutes proving that he is a consistent and reliable performer in front of goal.
In fact, Thuram could be a huge upgrade on current Villa centre-forward Danny Ings and could be the ideal replacement to offer a better goal threat in the team.
When comparing the two strikers over their respective season so far, Thuram has outperformed Ings in a number of attributes, including goal contributions (13 v 5), shots on target rate (53.6% v 45.5%), shot-creating actions (39 v 14) and goal-creating actions per 90 minutes (0.53 v 0.25).
Furthermore, the versatile Frenchman can offer Emery options in terms of positioning, as the 25-year-old has gained a wealth of experience in playing both the centre-forward role and in the wider forward positions.
Signing Thuram would be a major coup for Emery in Villa’s pursuit to climb the Premier League table, and considering his modest transfer valuation, he would be an absolute steal for NSWE if they pick him up for the aforementioned amount.
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via IFTTT