Aston Villa are interested in signing an Argentine striker who has been likened to former Manchester United and Manchester City star Carlos Tevez, according to reports.
Aston Villa latest news
After a poor run that saw them win just once in nine games across all competitions, Aston Villa now seem to have rediscovered their best form. Unai Emery’s side have won each of their last three games, beating both Brentford and Southampton in the Premier League, as well as RB Leipzig in the Champions League.
Villa’s impressive 3-2 win over the German side saw the West Midlands club all but clinch a place in the tournament’s knockout stages, with victory leaving them third in the new-look league phase with just two games to play.
Colombian striker Jhon Duran earned most of the plaudits on the night, coming off the bench to score a screamer in the second-half, taking his tally for the season to 10 in all competitions.
Speaking about Duran, who has been heavily linked with a move to Chelsea, after the game, Emery said: “His potential is massive. He scored a great goal and he works and we are trying to get the team strong with a tactical approach. Tactically he is improving and today he played a fantastic 45 minutes.”
Villa eyeing new striker
Though Duran is impressing, Villa are still reportedly keen to add more firepower to their arsenal. According to CaughtOffside, Emery’s side are one of a number of Premier League clubs alongside Arsenal and Newcastle United eyeing a potential move for Bologna forward Santiago Castro.
The Argentine, 20, has scored five goals and produced six assists in 20 games for Bologna this season. CaughtOffside claim that Juventus and Inter Milan are also interested, and that Bologna could sell for a fee in the region of £33 million. They expect Villa to be a “tempting project” due to the prospect of more playing time than the likes of Arsenal, as well as the chance to work under Emery.
Castro only joined Bologna from Velez Sarsfield in January and has quickly emerged as a key figure for Vincenzo Italiano’s side – especially since the departure of Joshua Zirkzee to Manchester United in the summer. According to Foot Italia, Castro’s idol is his compatriot and Inter Milan striker Lautro Martinez, however it’s another Argentine striker he’s been likened to in terms of both his style of play and stature.
“Santiago Castro looking even more like a Tevez 2.0,” wrote Italian football analyst Ben Mattinson of the young forward on X earlier this year. In a separate post, Mattinson also described him as an “Argentine prospect with a complete forward profile”.
“Loves to run in behind, good aerially, aggressive presence with good link-up. More focused on scoring than link-up play, can play wide too.”
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Castro, however, doesn’t like being compared to others: “I prefer to be talked about for who I am. I want to be judged as Santiago Castro, nothing more,” he said in a recent an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
