It’s been a bumpy ride for Aston Villa so far during the chaotic summer transfer window.
PSR-related issues have hindered the number of incoming signings the Premier League outfit has been able to make, with their worrying financial state resulting in the sale of homegrown prodigy Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle United for £43m.
Morgan Rogers could soon be the next devastating exit as Thomas Frank’s Tottenham Hotspur wait in the wings for his £100m signature.
However, all the doom and gloom enveloping Villa Park would surely be lifted by some exciting additions to the building, before the dramatic window shuts.
Aston Villa very keen on last-minute signing
Losing a player of Rogers’ spellbinding quality would be a crushing blow to Villa’s already fragile confidence, considering the recent recipient of the PFA Young Player of the Year – who has also been looked at persistently by Chelsea – collected an astounding 30 goals and assists in all competitions last campaign.
Unai Emery and Co. won’t want to be bogged down too much by the anxiety of losing another of their star assets, though, as last-ditch incomings are also in the pipeline.
Adrien Rabiot is reportedly on their radar as he attempts to leave Marseille behind after a public falling out. On top of that development, Nicolas Jackson is also being regularly spoken about as another potential arrival, with the ex-Villarreal attacker being eyed up by Bayern Munich, alongside the Villans.
Jackson’s teammate at Stamford Bridge in Christopher Nkunku is another interesting name on the Villa shortlist, with journalist Fabrizio Romano now delivering an update as to whether a move could soon whir into motion.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
Indeed, Romano – while chatting on DAZN – stated that Emery’s men remain “very keen” about striking up a last-ditch deal for the hot-and-cold Frenchman, with a speculated £35m price tag already in the air.
While the ex-RB Leipzig attacker hasn’t always been full guns blazing in West London, he could well prove to be a smart buy, particularly as Villa attempt to finally land a Jhon Duran replacement.
How Nkunku can finally replace Duran
This might well be viewed as a wild initial shout, considering Nkunku has largely struggled to get going donning Chelsea blue.
From 38 mainly unmemorable Premier League outings, the £35m-rated forward has only collected six strikes, but there is a method behind the madness here.
Games
38
55
Starts
11
7
Goals
6
12
Assists
2
0
Indeed, as can be seen when glancing at the table above, Nkunku has managed to collect a majority of these strikes when being utilised as an impact substitute in West London, with precisely four of those six goals coming when he’s been launched into action mid-contest.
Of course, his lightning-quick numbers do pale in comparison somewhat to Duran’s blistering output – with Emery even going out of his way to label the Colombian as “very clinical” for his 12 goals from just seven top-flight starts – but there are positive signs that he could be the Spaniard’s next iteration of the South American.
After all, if Emery can get the very best out of Nkunku daily, landing the Frenchman will surely be seen as a similarly golden steal to Duran’s £18m entry fee, with the Chelsea number 18 once branded as “unstoppable” by journalist Zach Lowy when sensationally notching up 70 goals and 56 assists on the books of Leipzig.
It will be a tough ask to get this instantly back out of an attacker bruised by his injury-strewn Chelsea experience.
But, it could be a worthwhile gamble, if he goes on to excite and tantalise Villa fans in a similar electric manner to that of Duran.