Aston Villa could look to the January transfer window to strengthen their squad ahead of the second half of the season, and a reliable source has revealed an update on the club’s pursuit of one potential target.
What’s the latest?
According to Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor, Villa are interested in signing Atletico Madrid striker Matheus Cunha.
He told GIVEMESPORT: “In terms of clubs interested, I know Villa are looking, Leeds as well. Leeds actually looked at him before he went to Atletico Madrid.”
“But I do expect Wolves to be in the box seat for that one, but obviously there’s no agreement to date, which does leave the door open to someone else.”
It’d be a huge risk
Unai Emery is just getting settled in at Villa Park but will surely be keen to put his own mark on the squad when he is given the opportunity to acquire the services of new players in the January transfer window.
The Villans have had an inconsistent start to their Premier League season, but after the newly-appointed manager picked up victories in his first two top-flight outings at the helm, they have climbed into 12th ahead of the World Cup break.
Despite the positive start for Emery in the Midlands, the former Villarreal boss will be hoping that he can transform the performances displayed over the entire campaign so far and continue the exemplary form that his team started to pick up when they return to action against Liverpool on Boxing Day.
If it is true that Villa are interested in Cunha, it is clear that Emery is looking at bolstering his attacking threat over the second half of the season to ensure that his first six months at the club leads to a comfortable finish and potentially ending the season in the top half of the table.
However, the signing of the £42m-valued dynamo – who was hailed as “unpredictable” by his former coach Maurizio Jacobacci – could be a huge risk for Villa, as he has not been in prime goalscoring form during the season so far.
In 11 appearances for Atletico this term, Cunha has failed to find net, missed four big chances and is currently one of the lowest-ranked players in the squad (21st out of 23). He has averaged just 0.7 shots on target, 0.5 key passes and 0.5 successful dribbles per game, which shows that he has not been a threatening presence in front of goal.
In fact, the Brazilian centre-forward has only scored seven goals in total for his club in 54 appearances, with a goal contribution every 255 minutes.
With that in mind, signing Cunha could be a huge risk and a bad move for the powers at Villa Park, as they should be looking at more consistent and aggressive attacking players who can make an instant impact on the team.