Aston Villa are reportedly interested in Atletico Madrid forward Matheus Cunha and have made initial contact with the Spanish giants.
The 23-year-old joined Atleti in 2021 and has since gone on to make 54 appearances for the club, scoring seven goals and providing eight assists.
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Prior to that, he had spells with Hertha Berlin and RB Leipzig, while he also has eight senior caps for Brazil to his name as he has shown real potential to date.
According to Matteo Moretto, via Relevo, interest from Villa in Cunha is real ahead of the January transfer window, and while negotiations between the two clubs haven’t yet begun, it’s noted that initial contact has been made to discuss a possible transfer.
It’s unclear at this early stage as to how much it would cost to prise the Brazilian forward away from the Spanish capital, as the report goes on to add that his current contract has a release clause of €80m+ and runs until 2026. Having paid €26m to sign him, Atleti will no doubt want to recoup as much of that transfer fee as possible.
Cunha isn’t the first attacking player to be paired with a move to Villa in recent weeks, and so there appears to be a trend developing in that Emery could prioritise bolstering his options in that department and adding more firepower to his side.
Having displayed pace, athleticism, technical quality and an eye for picking out the right pass and for goal, there is a lot to like about what Cunha could potentially bring to the Villa attack, as he could also add a new dynamic with his ability to pick the ball up in deeper positions and drive forward to offer a threat.
With an ability to play across the frontline in various roles too, Cunha would also add versatility and depth in the final third, while at 23, he still has plenty of time ahead of him to develop and fulfil his potential to become a key figure.
Time will tell whether or not that’s a process that will play out in a Villa shirt, but it would appear as though he is on our transfer radar ahead of Emery’s first window in charge.
