It looks set to be a busy transfer window at Aston Villa with multiple positions that need bolstering.
Unai Emery has prioritised signing a right-back in January and an attacking player to help out Ollie Watkins.
Aston Villa were edging closer to making their first signing of the window after a £10m bid was accepted for Hellas Verona winger Cyril Ngonge.
Unfortunately, Villa have now learnt that Ngonge’s preference is to stay in Italy and may have to look elsewhere.
Several names have been drafted up on their shortlist of attacking players, including teenage goal-machine Yannick Edouardo and Leeds United star Crysencio Summerville.
In what promises to be a busy summer for the club, new names continue to pop up on their radar all the time and now a former Premier League winger is rumoured to be available on a free transfer in the summer.
Aston Villa now ‘interested’ in Lazio winger Felipe Anderson
According to Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas, Aston Villa are ‘showing interest’ in signing Anderson on a free in the summer.
The Lazio star is free to speak to clubs outside of Italy this month about a pre-contract agreement.
During his time at West Ham United between 2018 and 2021, Anderson showed glimpses of his exceptional quality having plundered nine goals and assisted four in his first season for the club.
But after struggling for consistency at the London Stadium, he was shipped out to Porto on loan before being sold to Lazio in 2021.
Since arriving at the Serie A giants, he has caught the attention of several clubs across Europe due to his blistering form, including fellow Italian side Juventus.
The 30-year-old has 20 goals and has 23 assists in 123 appearances since re-signing for Lazio.
Indeed, if Villa can beat other clubs to his signature, he could be an incredible coup on a free transfer.
Anderson could be a bargain signing for Villa
After a difficult spell in England, Anderson has turned a corner since returning to Italy, but that doesn’t mean he can’t showcase his talent at Villa Park.
There were several reasons why it didn’t work out for him in East London and one of those was down to David Moyes’ style of football perhaps restricting his flair and skilfulness in the final third.
Under the tutelage of Emery, however, the Spaniard is someone who encourages his attacking players to express themselves.
As a result of this philosophy, the likes of Leon Bailey and Watkins are in the form of their lives, though the Villans are crying out for some added skill and invention in the final third.
Anderson, who was previously dubbed as a ‘terrific talent’ by former Hammers teammate Robert Snodgrass, can use his disappointing spell at West Ham as fuel to prove he belongs in the Premier League with Aston Villa.
