The Midlands outfit are looking to bolster their frontline options next month.
Aston Villa are considering a move to bring a new striker back to the Premier League in January, according to a fresh report.
Unai Emery’s Villa in flying form
The Villa Park outfit have made nothing short of a remarkable start to the new campaign having won 12, drawn two and lost just three of their opening 17 fixtures, meaning that they currently find themselves third in the top-flight table, level on points with Liverpool.
Despite having Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran at his disposal at centre-forward, Unai Emery is looking to strengthen his options in that particular area of the pitch, and the manager has set his sights on one target in particular who will know current Villan Youri Tielemans well.
Back in 2017, Leicester City’s Kelechi Iheanacho first put pen to paper from Manchester City, and he’s since gone on to become a regular feature at the King Power Stadium, making a total of 226 senior appearances (Transfermarkt – Iheanacho statistics).
However, Nigeria’s international will have reached the expiration of his deal at the end of the season, so should he not be signing fresh terms, the upcoming window will present his club with their final opportunity to cash in on the 27-year-old so that they don’t risk losing him for free next summer (Leicester contracts).
Aston Villa eyeing Iheanacho
According to Football Insider, Aston Villa are interested in signing Iheanacho, alongside RB Leipzig’s Timo Werner in January.
“Aston Villa have set their sights on RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner and Leicester City star Kelechi Iheanacho ahead of the January transfer window, sources have told Football Insider. The duo are on the radar for the Midlands giants as they step up their push for a forward signing in the new year.”
Iheanacho could be a “prolific” addition
Since the start of his career, Iheanacho has posted 134 contributions (87 goals and 47 assists) from 299 appearances, showing how prolific he can be in the final third, and he’s actually comfortable operating in all four roles across the frontline.
Standing at 6 foot 1, the left-footed finisher has previously been deployed as a left-winger, right-winger and a second striker alongside his usual role leading the line through the middle, so his versatility to play in other areas will be yet another attractive attribute.
Sponsored by Nike, Emery’s target even has an excellent record against his admirers having scored seven goals against Villa – his most vs any opponent – so if he’s capable of performing at this high of a level for the opposition, imagine what he could do under Emery.
As hailed by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, Iheanacho is a truly “prolific” striker, and with him likely to be available for a potential cut-price due to his contract situation, Aston Villa should definitely capitalise on this to try and bring him to the Midlands in January.
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