Aston Villa broke their club transfer record with the signing of Wesley Moraes for £22 million, and they could break that record once again ahead of the 2019-20 season.
The Villans who secured promotion to the Premier League after winning the Championship play-off final against Derby County, are reportedly interested in signing 20-year-old striker, Rafael Leao.
The Portuguese striker currently plays for Lille, joining the club in 2018 after terminating his contract with Portuguese team Sporting.
According to SuperDeporte, Aston Villa are one of the many sides trailing him. Napoli, Valencia, as well as Everton are some of the many clubs interested in signing Leao.
Leao joined the French club on a free transfer after terminating his contract with Sporting Club in Portugal, due to off-field issues. The youngster still has four years remaining on his current contract at Lille.
In his first season with the club, Leao scored 8 goals and managed 3 assists in 26 appearances for the club.
Why Rafael Leao would be a top addition to Aston Villa
Dubbed the “Portuguese Kylian Mbappe”, Leao is a fast and strong striker, who likes to run through defences. The youngster is always looking to get in behind the defence, and using his pace and strength to leave the opposition defence in his wake.
The 6’2″ striker is strong and brushes off defenders, while also constantly moving from central areas to wide areas, and causing trouble to the opposition defence in more than one way.
Technically sound and a clinical finisher, Leao averaged 1.5 shots per game for Lille last season in Ligue 1. The youngster has the technique, pace, and strength to be a success in any league in Europe, and is bound to get even better in the years to come.
Aston Villa should certainly sign him as it would be a huge statement of intent from the club, which would cause concern to their Premier League rivals.
However, convincing a young player of the talent of Rafael Leao to join Villa over clubs like Napoli, Valencia, or even Everton, will be a very tough task.
Can Villa afford to sign a €30 million+ player after already spending over €70 million in the season? Time will tell.
Stats via Whoscored