Aston Villa are reportedly keen on Hoffenheim forward Maximilian Beier and we could rival Chelsea for his signature this summer.
The 21-year-old impressed last season, scoring 16 goals and providing three assists in 36 appearances, while he has the versatility and quality to play either as a forward or out on the wing.
READ MORE: New signing imminent as touted terms emerge over key Villa swoop
His form earned him a place in Germany’s squad for EURO 2024 this summer as he looks to add to his two caps, but he could also be a target for Villa in the coming weeks.
According to Sky Sport Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, Villa have a concrete interest in the German international, and have gathered information on him, seemingly with the view of making a proposal to sign him.
It’s added that Beier has a release clause in his current contract worth around €30m, and while the player himself has insisted that he won’t discuss his future until after the Euros, it could be one to monitor next month with Chelsea also said to be interested.
While Villa confirmed the signing of Lewis Dobbin last week, speculation has linked Jhon Duran with a departure this summer. If that materialises, it would leave us light up top in terms of competition and depth behind Ollie Watkins, while we may well need another option to play out wide in order to give Unai Emery the ability to rotate.
Competition is fiercer in that area of the squad, but if Beier is seen as a centre-forward option by Villa, then a potential swoop would make a lot of sense, particularly if Duran leaves a void that must be filled before the start of next season.
Villa’s transfer strategy is largely showing a common trend now in terms of bringing in players in their early 20s with promising futures ahead of them, and the possibility of becoming increasingly valuable moving forward.
Beier would fit that mould too while ticking an important box in terms of what we need to add this summer, and so time will tell if Emery, Monchi and the recruitment team all believe the Hoffenheim man is the most suitable option to draft in as a key reinforcement that will be the best fit for us.
It promises to be a thrilling transfer window for the club as we look to address our PSR concerns this month, and so hopefully in conjunction with the work being done from the business and commercial side, we hope to be in a position of strength as of next month in terms of how much we can spend to strengthen Emery’s squad.
