Aston Villa have confirmed the signing of Kyrie Pierre from Bristol Rovers, while Mehdi Zerkane is reportedly one of our transfer targets this summer.
Villa’s youth sides have impressed this past year, particularly the U18s who have reached the FA Youth Cup Final which will be played later this month.
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It appears as though adding more talent to the academy and developing talent from within is a key part of the strategy moving forward, as we continue to bring in top prospects.
Villa confirm Pierre arrival
As per the club’s official site, we have signed Pierre from Bristol Rovers ahead of his 16th birthday next month, with reports suggesting that he has joined for a record fee for a Rovers academy player.
That in itself says a lot about the talent that he possesses, and it will be interesting to see how he progresses in the coming years as he will no doubt harbour ambitions of eventually breaking into the senior squad.
Villa interested in Zerkane
Meanwhile, Villa have reportedly stepped up their pursuit of Zerkane, with L’Equipe noting that we watched him in action for Bordeaux at the weekend as he scored in a 3-0 win over Lens.
It’s added that he has been on the Villa radar for around three months, and so it remains to be seen whether or not we opt to lodge a bid for the 21-year-old.
Zerkane is a natural right winger but can play on the opposite flank as well as through the middle, while he’s bagged one goal and one assist in 27 appearances for the Bordeaux first team.
Already capped by Algeria, it appears as though he also has a bright future ahead of him, but time will tell whether or not that journey continues at Villa Park next season as Dean Smith looks to add more quality to his squad in order for us to compete and kick on further up the Premier League table moving forward.
