Aston Villa’s first European tour in over a decade will commence next season and it has really got the juices flowing amongst the Villa Park faithful.
But in order for Unai Emery to sing and dance, both in Europe and in the Premier League, then he needs to bolster his squad during the 2023 summer transfer window.
There are suggestions in The Daily Mail that the Europa Conference League side are eyeing up a move for Nottingham Forest whizkid, Brennan Johnson.
The 22-year-old enjoyed a brilliant debut season in the Premier League, scoring eight goals and supplying three assists, as Steve Cooper’s side, after spending over £100 million following their promotion, survived relegation.
Villa fans will know that story pretty well. Spending over £100 million after earning promotion via the play-offs and then your boyhood fan playing a huge part in you staying in the division.
Nonetheless, it has been suggested by The Daily Mail that ‘interest is building’ in Johnson, with Villa as one of the teams keen.
Would Johnson improve Villa?
A versatile player, Johnson has the skill set to play across the front three and provide that goal threat from, down the middle or from the right flank.
Villa need to improve their attack this summer because they can’t just rely on Ollie Watkins for goals, even though he has taken his game to seriously high levels following the arrival of Emery.
Johnson wouldn’t improve the starting XI, but he would enhance the squad and add more bite from the bench.
From the perspective of Villa, if you can sign such a player for less than £30 million, then you probably have a good deal on your hands.
Other than that, they should look elsewhere because, for the player himself, he is probably better off starting on a regular basis at Forest and helping his boyhood club up the Premier League table.
Forest have weathered the storm and they will continue to compete against the elite next season, but now it’s about stabilising themselves further, and this time, trying to avoid a relegation fight.
With Johnson within their ranks, those chances improve dramatically for the two-time European champions.
