Following on from Aston Villa’s 1-4 victory over Bolton last night Steven Gerrard told the press that Villa was still looking at how they could strengthen the squad.
“We’re working behind the scenes on a few different situations to try and make the team and the squad stronger and better prepared from now until January..”
It is suggested that Gerrard would still like a centre-back, midfielder and attacker and we are starting to get to that time of the transfer window where we go into overdrive so we take a look at some of the rumours doing the rounds.
Defensive options
The one name that has been doing the rounds since Diego Carlos picked up his injury is Southampton defender Jan Bednarek. Those rumours then picked up a notch when Kortney Hause joined Watford on loan earlier this week.
It is unclear what kind of deal Villa are looking at as some media outlets are suggesting a permanent one while others state it would be a loan. The 26-year-old defender has over 125 Premier League appearances to his name and has 42 caps for Poland.
There is no real surprise that the 6ft 2-tall defender is good in the air and could help Villa with their poor set-piece record. His strengths also include ball interception, holding on to the ball and concentration levels according to Whoscored.
Another name came onto the scene today thanks to La Parisien. The article goes on to say that Paris-SG are desperate to trim their bloated squad and defender Abdou Diallo would be open to linking up with Steven Gerrard at Villa Park.
The Senegal international was a £ 30 million signing from Borussia Dortmund 2 years ago but has found himself out of favour this season being an unused substitute so far this campaign. It is believed PSG would accept an offer in the region of around £10m.
Gregg Evans of the Athletic also reported today that Villa also has options from both the Spanish and Portuguese leagues but no names were mentioned.
Midfield
Villa fans are crying out for another midfielder. I believe it hasn’t helped by Gerrard stating earlier in the summer that he would like to bring in another option. On top of that, the form of those in and around the squad so far this season has hardly set the world alight.
The obvious link all summer has been Connor Gallagher but the midfielder who was on loan at Crystal Palace started for Chelsea in their 0-3 defeat to Leeds United at the weekend which would suggest he won’t be leaving Stamford Bridge in this window, at least.
Another name that doesn’t seem to be going away is Ibrahim Sangaré. The Ivorian plays for PSV who are hoping to get into the Champions League this season as they face off against Rangers tonight (3-2 to Rangers at the time of writing). Some believe that should the Dutch side fail to progress they may have to offload and Sangaré may be more open to a move.
Other than that, there haven’t really been any solid leads. Villa has made it clear they will only spend if the right players come available but should they lose to West Ham the weekend, the pressure on Gerrard will rise.
Attacking Options
Most didn’t believe that Villa would strengthen on the attacking front. We aren’t exactly short on numbers and Gerrard opted to keep Cameron Archer around this season. Well, at least we thought.
Earlier this week, Gerrard was asked about Archer and the manager stated he wasn’t sure if he would be involved in the game against Bolton. The striker eventually got a 10-minute cameo but it would suggest that the manager is open to a loan move.
The Telegraph reported that Villa had a £25million offer accepted for Ismaila Sarr earlier this week but the deal broke down due to not being able to agree on personal terms with the player and his agent.
I am waiting for the link to Alfredo Morelos following the striker’s omission from Ranger’s Champions League playoff tonight due to a poor attitude, according to the club.
It is unclear if any more players will come in but I don’t think it will be through a lack of trying from Villa’s side between now and when the window slams shut.
