Aston Villa Opinion: Why Villa should do everything to sign Neal Maupay?
According to a report from the Birmingham Mail, Aston Villa are interested in signing FC Porto striker Moussa Marega.
The 28-year-old scored 22 goals last season as Porto clinched the title. He has managed to replicate his form in the 2018/19 campaign, amassing 17 goals and six assists so far across all competitions.
The Malian’s rip-roaring form for the Portuguese giants has caught the attention of Aston Villa, but the forward has a €40million release clause, adds the report. €40million is a lot of money and is certainly way beyond Villa’s reach.
That being said, Aston Villa should drop their interest in Marega and switch their focus to sign Brentford star Neal Maupay.
Neal Maupay, 22, has been heavily linked with a move to Aston Villa since the appointment of Dean Smith last year. It was Dean Smith, former Brentford manager, brought the Frenchman to England in the summer of 2017.
The 22-year-old forward has been a star at Brentford ever since arriving from Saint-Etienne. He has been in terrific form this season, scoring 24 goals and laying on eight assists in 42 games. And his solid form in front of goal has certainly brought him to the attention of Aston Villa, who will need a striker next season following the departure of Tammy Abraham.
Tammy Abraham has been in excellent form this season and has 25 league goals to his name so far in this year’s league campaign. He’ll leave a notable void for Smith’s side once he returns to Chelsea after the expiry of his loan at the end of the season.
Thus, Smith needs to prioritise bringing in a replacement for Abraham in the summer and he should go all out for his former protégé, Neal Maupay.
Speedy, agile, intelligent and creative, Maupay is a versatile player, who can lead the line as well as play as a no.10 and or on either wing. His versatility would give Smith a lot of options in the attack as well. He generally uses his pace and directness to run behind the opposition defenders and finish off chances.
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The Frenchman is one of the Championship’s standout forwards and he often steps up with crucial goals and assists for Brentford. He is a regular in the Brentford setup but a promise of better wages, higher chances of playing in the Premier League and working under the manager that brought him to England could be enough for Villa to tempt him to Villa Park.
Verdict
Villa are in an impressive run of form, winning 10 games on a trot that has brought them closer to qualifying for the play-offs. With or without promotion, Smith needs to bring in reinforcements in the summer and one of his main priorities will be to reunite with Maupay.
