Aston Villa eyeing deal for “terrifying” £51m ace

Aston Villa fans have cheered on a lot of potent attackers in recent memory.

Indeed, last season saw the Villans masses become enamoured with the heroics of Jhon Duran, with the Colombian firing home a quickfire 12 goals from 27 appearances, before being picked up by Al-Nassr.

Of course, there is also Ollie Watkins still at Villa Park, as the England international chipped in with a lethal 17 strikes all across the 24/25 campaign.

However, with rumours continuing to circulate that Watkins might be leaving the West Midlands behind this summer for pastures new, a new striker looks to be a priority for Emery and Co. ahead of September’s approaching deadline, as a deadly target now comes into focus.

Villa maintain interest in £51m forward

Indeed, Watkins has been linked with a move away to Newcastle United and Manchester United in recent days.

Regardless of this rampant speculation, the 29-year-old has allowed his football to do the talking on Villa’s pre-season tour, as seen in the header above, cannoning into the net against Nashville SC.

Fulham attacker Rodrigo Muniz is allegedly on the Villa shopping list as they hunt down reinforcements up top, but Emery might well fancy a move for this alternative attacker instead from the Bundesliga.

As per Sky Sports Germany reporters Florian Plettenberg and Philipp Hinze, Villa also have their eyes on RB Leipzig marksman Lois Openda, with the report openly stating that the Belgian would be viewed as a viable replacement for Watkins.

Sunderland is also named as another Premier League outfit looking at the in-demand 25-year-old, with the Leipzig number 11 also now available at a far more reasonable £51m price tag, having once had a weighty £70m release clause above his head.

Villa will hope they can advance to the front of the queue for Openda’s services, having experienced great success in the past when snapping up a Belgian attacker who has been a hit in Europe, in the form of Christian Benteke.

How Openda can be Emery’s own Benteke

Benteke’s name will most certainly still be uttered in the same breath as Duran and Watkins.

The current DC United centre-forward would instantly take the English game by storm when leading the line for the Villans with venom, as seen in him accumulating a prolific 19 goals across his debut top-flight campaign.

In total, at Villa Park by the end of his blistering three-season association with the club, the imposing Belgian would collect a deadly 49 strikes from 101 clashes, leading to former Villa teammate Andreas Weimann hailing him as an “unbelievable” talent.

Openda has been described in equally glowing terms for his goalscoring exploits at Leipzig – having been dubbed as “terrifying” to shut down by football journalist Seb Stafford-Bloor – with the hope history can repeat itself in the here and now as Emery wins his very own Benteke-style figure.

Amazingly, Openda is already ahead of where Benteke was when he burst onto the scene in England, with the 27-time Belgium international boasting a hefty 105 goals next to his name, lining up in the Bundesliga, Eredivisie, Ligue 1, and even the Jupiler Pro League, where Benteke initially made a name for himself.

It will, of course, come at a greater cost; therefore, with the DC striker only costing the Villans £7m to bring in from Genk 13 years ago. Whereas, the lethal Leipzig 11 will set Emery and Co. back around the £51m price range.

Still, this feels like a worthwhile amount of money to fork out for a striker who fired home a ridiculous 28 goals in all competitions across the 23/24 season.

He could well become even more of a nuisance up top in his new surroundings as the likes of Morgan Rogers could supply him with chances, as Villa attempt to lessen their worries about Watkins exiting by securing a deal for a potent Belgian who might soon follow in Benteke’s esteemed footsteps.